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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: press · face · coach · ball · stem · craft · temple · last

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. face — to confront
  4. face — part of the head
  5. ball — a great time
  6. last — finally
  7. face — to point toward
  8. craft — a skill
  9. stem — to come from
  10. press — a publisher
  11. ball — a dance
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. craft — boats
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. last — to go on
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. press — newspapers
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. press — to push
  24. temple — a place of worship

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