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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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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: pass · net · capital · deal · swing · shower · tear · wave

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. shower — to wash
  3. capital — a city
  4. deal — to handle
  5. swing — in golf
  6. swing — to play on
  7. capital — money
  8. tear — to rip
  9. swing — music
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. net — after costs
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. net — in sport
  15. shower — rain
  16. pass — a permit
  17. tear — from crying
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. tear — from crying
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. deal — an agreement

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