Homonyms from Cell to Cent

by Lisa Binion


How many of the following homonyms are you familiar with? There are an endless supply of words that sound alike, yet are spelled differently and even have different meanings in our wonderful English language. I challenge you to learn all of these words, along with their different spellings and meanings, and use them in your writing.

cell, sell
A cell is a small room or a small group.
The cell of terrorists were planning an attack on their unsuspecting allies.
When you sell something, you exchange it for some kind or money.
Are you going to sell your current automobile before you purchase another one? Or are you just going to trade it in?

cellar, seller
A cellar is a room that is at least partway underground and is usually used for the storage of food.
There was enough food in the cellar to last for several years.
A seller is one who sells things.
The seller had a very successful business at the Woolly Worm Festival each year.

censer, censor, and sensor
A censer in something you burn incense in , especially during a religious service.
The altar boy lit the censer.
A censor is one who decides what is fit to be played or shown to the general public, including children.
The censor was due to come and examine the books in the school library.
A sensor is a sense organ or a device which detects light, radiation, temperature, etc.
A sensor was placed in the area that had been bombed to see if any radiation could be detected.

census and senses
A census is a head count.
During the last census, one of the workers was brutally killed here in the backwoods of Kentucky.
People have five senses - sight, smell, hearing, taste, touch – by which we perceive stimuli from inside or outside the body.
Out of all her senses, Jenny hadn't realized how she took her sight for granted, until she lost it in a tragic accident.

cent, sent, scent
A cent is a coin, usually worth one penny.
His grocery bill totaled so much that even though he paid with a hundred dollar bill, he only received one cent in change.
When something, such as a signal is dispatched, it is sent.
Marcia sent her son to the store.
A scent is a distinctive odor, sometimes pleasant, sometimes not so pleasant.
Flowers of plants in the genus Rafflesia have the scent of decaying meat.