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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: ground · capital · pitch · tear · shower · pass

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. capital — a city
  4. shower — rain
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. capital — money
  8. pitch — completely
  9. shower — to wash
  10. tear — to rip
  11. ground — crushed
  12. tear — from crying
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. tear — from crying
  17. ground — the earth
  18. pass — a permit

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