beak vs claw

beak

noun
  • A toe clip. 

  • Any of various nymphalid butterflies of the genus Libythea, notable for the beak-like elongation on their heads. 

  • A schoolmaster (originally, at Eton). 

  • The human nose, especially one that is large and pointed. 

  • That part of a ship, before the forecastle, which is fastened to the stem, and supported by the main knee. 

  • A rigid structure projecting from the front of a bird's face, used for pecking, grooming, foraging, carrying items, eating food, etc. 

  • A similar structure forming the jaws of an octopus, turtle, etc. 

  • A justice of the peace; a magistrate. 

  • The upper or projecting part of the shell, near the hinge of a bivalve. 

  • The prolongation of certain univalve shells containing the canal. 

  • The long projecting sucking mouth of some insects and other invertebrates, as in the Hemiptera. 

  • A beam, shod or armed at the end with a metal head or point, and projecting from the prow of an ancient galley, used as a ram to pierce the vessel of an enemy; a beakhead. 

  • cocaine. 

  • Any process somewhat like the beak of a bird, terminating the fruit or other parts of a plant. 

  • Anything projecting or ending in a point like a beak, such as a promontory of land. 

  • A continuous slight projection ending in an arris or narrow fillet; that part of a drip from which the water is thrown off. 

verb
  • To play truant. 

  • Seize with the beak. 

  • Strike with the beak. 

claw

noun
  • A foot equipped with such. 

  • The pincer (chela) of a crustacean or other arthropod. 

  • A curved, pointed horny nail on each digit of the foot of a mammal, reptile, or bird. 

  • A mechanical device resembling a claw, used for gripping or lifting. 

  • A slender appendage or process, formed like a claw, such as the base of petals of the pink. 

  • The act of catching a ball overhand. 

  • A human fingernail, particularly one extending well beyond the fingertip. 

verb
  • To scratch or to tear at. 

  • To use the claws to climb. 

  • To perform a claw catch. 

  • To use the claws to seize, to grip. 

  • To move with one's fingertips. 

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