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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 120 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: nail · sharp · mug · safe · field · chest · degree · chip

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. field — for sport
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — of your body
  5. mug — a face
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. chip — to eat
  12. chest — a box
  13. degree — from a university
  14. degree — temperature
  15. chip — for betting
  16. sharp — clever
  17. mug — a cup
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. field — farmland
  20. field — a subject
  21. degree — an amount
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. mug — to rob

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