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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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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: tear · stick · lash · racket · spring · march · patient · nail

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. march — music
  8. spring — a coil
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. march — the month
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. spring — the season
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. tear — from crying
  17. march — the month
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. tear — from crying
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. spring — of water
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. tear — to rip
  24. racket — for tennis

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