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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 116 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: sharp · nail · chip · snap · last · spell · field · degree

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. degree — from a university
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. last — finally
  7. last — to go on
  8. field — a subject
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. spell — magic
  11. spell — letters
  12. degree — temperature
  13. field — farmland
  14. degree — an amount
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. spell — a short time
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. snap — to click
  19. chip — for betting
  20. field — for sport
  21. last — final
  22. sharp — clever
  23. chip — to eat
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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