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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: content · tear · last · race · track · root · pop · degree

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. degree — temperature
  3. race — the arms race
  4. tear — from crying
  5. last — final
  6. race — humankind
  7. degree — an amount
  8. track — a song
  9. pop — soda
  10. root — of a word
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. pop — music
  13. root — the cause
  14. tear — from crying
  15. last — to go on
  16. root — of a plant
  17. content — happy
  18. last — finally
  19. degree — from a university
  20. track — to keep track
  21. track — a path
  22. race — a contest
  23. pop — to visit
  24. tear — to rip

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com