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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: wind · craft · content · patient · mate · kid

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. content — the amount
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. mate — a friend
  5. mate — a partner
  6. content — happy
  7. kid — child
  8. craft — a skill
  9. kid — to tease
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. craft — boats
  15. mate — to breed
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. content — videos and posts

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