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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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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 · snap · land · firm · court · can · track · band

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. land — to come down
  3. court — of a king
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. can — a tin
  6. can — to be able to
  7. band — a music group
  8. land — ground
  9. track — a path
  10. track — to keep track
  11. track — a song
  12. band — a ring
  13. firm — a company
  14. firm — decided
  15. snap — to click
  16. court — for sport
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. firm — steady
  21. court — of law
  22. land — a country
  23. can — a tin
  24. wave — of the sea

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