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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
Word bank
YesNo
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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: straw · cold · scale · charge · lie · season · branch · root

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. branch — a division
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. root — of a word
  5. season — of the year
  6. cold — not warm
  7. lie — to recline
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. scale — size or range
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. cold — an illness
  15. charge — electricity
  16. root — the cause
  17. charge — a price
  18. season — in sport
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. root — of a plant
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. charge — in control

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