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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: snap · object · tear · pound · racket · band · firm · rest

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. object — a thing
  4. band — a music group
  5. pound — a weight
  6. firm — a company
  7. rest — a break
  8. firm — steady
  9. rest — what's left
  10. band — a ring
  11. object — to protest
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. object — an aim
  17. tear — from crying
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. tear — from crying
  22. firm — decided
  23. tear — to rip
  24. rest — what's left

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