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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: mine · plane · bark · field · object · race · tube · lash

  1. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. object — to protest
  4. bark — to shout
  5. race — humankind
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. mine — for digging
  8. object — an aim
  9. field — farmland
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. field — a subject
  12. race — the arms race
  13. tube — the underground
  14. race — a contest
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. field — for sport
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. plane — a tool
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. tube — a container
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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