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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: degree · roll · suit · content · date · field · race · nail

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. roll — a cake
  3. race — humankind
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. race — a contest
  6. degree — from a university
  7. race — the arms race
  8. suit — clothes
  9. content — the amount
  10. suit — in cards
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. content — happy
  16. date — the fruit
  17. suit — to fit
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — for sport
  20. degree — an amount
  21. field — farmland
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. degree — temperature
  24. roll — a list

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