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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: craft · wound · press · straw · temple · squash · stem · sharp

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. press — a publisher
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. stem — to come from
  10. craft — boats
  11. press — newspapers
  12. craft — a skill
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. sharp — clever
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. squash — the sport
  21. press — to push
  22. squash — to crush
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. squash — the vegetable

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