cable vs chain

cable

verb
  • To fasten (as if) with cable(s) 

  • To communicate by cable 

  • To provide with cable(s) 

  • To ornament with cabling. 

  • To wrap wires to form a cable 

  • To create cable stitches. 

  • To send a telegram, news, etc., by cable 

noun
  • 100 fathoms, 600 imperial feet, approximately 185 m. 

  • A strong rope or chain used to moor or anchor a ship. 

  • An assembly of two or more wires, used for electrical power or data circuits; one or more and/or the whole may be insulated. 

  • An assembly of two or more cable-laid ropes. 

  • The currency pair British Pound against United States Dollar. 

  • A strong, large-diameter wire or rope, or something resembling such a rope. 

  • A telegram, notably when sent by (submarine) telegraph cable. 

  • A system for transmitting television or Internet services over a network of coaxial or fibreoptic cables. 

  • A unit of length equal to one tenth of a nautical mile. 

  • A textural pattern achieved by passing groups of stitches over one another. 

  • A moulding, shaft of a column, or any other member of convex, rounded section, made to resemble the spiral twist of a rope. 

chain

verb
  • To fasten something with a chain. 

  • To link multiple items together. 

  • To connect as if with a chain, due to dependence, addiction, or other feelings 

  • To measure a distance using a 66-foot long chain, as in land surveying. 

  • To relate data items with a chain of pointers. 

  • To obstruct the mouth of a river etc with a chain. 

  • To obligate. 

  • To secure someone with fetters. 

  • To load and automatically run (a program). 

  • To be chained to another data item. 

noun
  • A series of interconnected links of known length, used as a measuring device. 

  • A series of stores or businesses with the same brand name. 

  • A number of atoms in a series, which combine to form a molecule. 

  • A unit of length equal to 22 yards. The length of a Gunter's surveying chain. The length of a cricket pitch. Equal to 20.12 metres, 4 rods, or 100 links. 

  • That which confines, fetters, or secures; a bond. 

  • A series of interconnected rings or links usually made of metal. 

  • Iron links bolted to the side of a vessel to bold the dead-eyes connected with the shrouds; also, the channels. 

  • A long measuring tape. 

  • A totally ordered set, especially a totally ordered subset of a poset. 

  • A sequence of linked house purchases, each of which is dependent on the preceding and succeeding purchase (said to be "broken" if a buyer or seller pulls out). 

  • A livery collar, a chain of office. 

  • The warp threads of a web. 

  • A series of interconnected things. 

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