countersign vs refuse

countersign

verb
  • To sign on the opposite side of (a document). 

  • To add a second signature to a document, affirming the validity of the signature of another person. 

noun
  • A second signature added to a document to affirm the validity of the signature of the first person. 

  • The response to a sign or signal. 

refuse

noun
  • Collectively, items or material that have been discarded; rubbish, garbage. 

verb
  • To decline a request or demand, forbear; to withhold permission. 

  • To melt again. 

  • To decline (a request or demand). 

  • To throw back, or cause to keep back (as the centre, a wing, or a flank), out of the regular alignment when troops are about to engage the enemy. 

adj
  • Discarded, rejected. 

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