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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: staff · chair · mark · degree · straw · craft · pitch · branch

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. staff — employees
  3. branch — a division
  4. craft — a skill
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. degree — from a university
  7. mark — a trace
  8. staff — employees
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. degree — an amount
  12. staff — a stick
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. mark — a grade
  15. chair — a leader
  16. craft — boats
  17. pitch — completely
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. degree — temperature
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. chair — to sit on

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