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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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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: field · rest · press · stem · kick · straw

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. press — a publisher
  5. rest — what's left
  6. field — farmland
  7. rest — a break
  8. press — newspapers
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stem — to come from
  11. rest — what's left
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. kick — in football
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. field — for sport
  17. press — to push
  18. stem — a stem cell

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