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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: trunk · press · stem · craft · net · tear

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. net — for catching
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. press — a publisher
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. press — to push
  10. press — newspapers
  11. tear — from crying
  12. stem — to come from
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. craft — a skill
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. net — in sport
  18. craft — boats

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