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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: chair · pitcher · chip · bear · kid · charge · degree · arm

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. degree — from a university
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. chair — a leader
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. chip — to eat
  9. charge — electricity
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kid — to tease
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. bear — the animal
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. chip — for betting
  17. degree — an amount
  18. kid — child
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. charge — in control
  22. charge — a price
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. degree — temperature

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