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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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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: safe · tear · chest · kid · nail · pound · sharp · mug

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. chest — of your body
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. mug — a cup
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. mug — a face
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. mug — to rob
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. chest — a box
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. tear — from crying
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. tear — to rip
  19. sharp — clever
  20. kid — to tease
  21. kid — child
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. pound — a weight
  24. tear — from crying

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