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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: wave · date · patient · capital · fan · wax · wind · temple

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. wind — moving air
  3. capital — money
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. date — the fruit
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. capital — a city
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. wind — moving air
  24. fan — to cool the air

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