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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 120 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: capital · patient · wax · bowl · wind · stock · rule · temple

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. capital — money
  7. wind — moving air
  8. stock — shares
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. wax — to grow
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. rule — a law
  16. rule — government
  17. wind — moving air
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. stock — goods
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. capital — a city
  24. capital — a big letter

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