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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 116 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: swing · board · club · perch · firm · season · wind · march

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. club — for dancing
  3. season — in sport
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. firm — a company
  8. club — for golf
  9. season — of the year
  10. swing — to play on
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. swing — in golf
  13. march — music
  14. board — to get on
  15. firm — decided
  16. wind — moving air
  17. swing — music
  18. club — a group
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. perch — the fish
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. firm — steady
  23. wind — moving air
  24. board — a flat piece

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