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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: object · fall · jam · wound · race · temple · land · march

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. march — the month
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. object — to protest
  7. object — a thing
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. race — a contest
  10. land — a country
  11. object — an aim
  12. race — the arms race
  13. march — music
  14. march — the month
  15. fall — to drop
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. wound — an injury
  19. race — humankind
  20. land — ground
  21. land — to come down
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. wound — an injury
  24. fall — the season

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