ax to grind vs praise

ax to grind

noun
  • A grudge or grievance, with implications of confrontation. 

  • A proposition or point of view to advocate, especially motivated by self-interest. 

praise

noun
  • Commendation; favourable representation in words. 

  • Worship. 

verb
  • To give praise to; to commend, glorify, or worship. 

How often have the words ax to grind and praise occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )