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

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

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

Answer key

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

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