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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: patient · date · club · wind · fine · march · lash · nail

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. club — for golf
  3. date — the fruit
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. club — for dancing
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. club — a group
  16. march — the month
  17. march — the month
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. march — music
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. fine — high quality
  23. fine — all right
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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