arrow vs shaft

arrow

noun
  • A dart. 

  • A projectile consisting of a shaft, a point and a tail with stabilizing fins that is shot from a bow. 

  • A directed edge. 

  • The inflorescence or tassel of a mature sugar cane plant. 

  • A sign or symbol used to indicate a direction (e.g. →). 

  • The -> symbol, which has specific meanings in various programming languages. 

verb
  • To move swiftly and directly (like an arrow). 

  • To let fly swiftly and directly. 

  • To develop an inflorescence. 

  • To navigate using the arrow keys. 

shaft

noun
  • Anything cast or thrown as a spear or javelin. 

  • A vertical or inclined passage sunk into the earth as part of a mine 

  • A vertical passage housing a lift or elevator; a liftshaft. 

  • A beam or ray of light. 

  • The main axis of a feather. 

  • Any column or pillar, particularly the body of a column between its capital and pedestal. 

  • The long, narrow, central body of a spear, arrow, or javelin. 

  • The chamber of a blast furnace. 

  • A ventilation or heating conduit; an air duct. 

  • A relatively small area of precipitation that an onlook can discern from the dry surrounding area. 

  • The main cylindrical part of the penis. 

  • Any long thin object, such as the handle of a tool, one of the poles between which an animal is harnessed to a vehicle, the driveshaft of a motorized vehicle with rear-wheel drive, an axle, etc. 

  • The long narrow body of a lacrosse stick. 

verb
  • To fuck over; to cause harm to, especially through deceit or treachery. 

  • To equip with a shaft. 

  • To fuck; to have sexual intercourse with. 

How often have the words arrow and shaft occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )