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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: kick · patient · field · pound · lash · date · chair · prune

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. chair — a leader
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — a subject
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. prune — to trim
  16. date — the fruit
  17. kick — in football
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. pound — a weight
  20. field — for sport
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. prune — to trim
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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