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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: kid · arm · pass · degree · pitcher · chair · ground · staff

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — employees
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. kid — to tease
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. ground — crushed
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. degree — an amount
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. ground — the earth
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. pass — a permit
  15. kid — child
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. staff — a stick
  19. degree — temperature
  20. ground — a position
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. degree — from a university
  24. chair — a leader

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