apron vs curb

apron

noun
  • The paved area of an airport, especially the area where aircraft park away from a terminal 

  • The sides of a tree's canopy. 

  • The portion of a stage extending towards the audience beyond the proscenium arch in a theatre. 

  • The paved area below the yellow line on a race track. 

  • The loading, parking or roadway area immediately beside a railway station 

  • A removable cover for the passengers' feet and legs in an open horse carriage. 

  • The cap of a cannon; a piece of lead laid over the vent to keep the priming dry. 

  • The short cassock ordinarily worn by English bishops. 

  • An article of clothing worn over the front of the torso and/or legs for protection from spills; also historically worn by Freemasons and as part of women's fashion. 

  • The spreading end of a driveway. 

  • A large decal toward the bottom of a pinball table. 

verb
  • To cover with, or as if with, an apron. 

curb

noun
  • A sidewalk, covered or partially enclosed, bordering the airport terminal road system with adjacent paved areas to permit vehicles to off-load or load passengers. 

  • Something that checks or restrains; a restraint. 

  • A swelling on the back part of the hind leg of a horse, just behind the lowest part of the hock joint, generally causing lameness. 

  • A concrete margin along the edge of a road; a kerb (UK, Australia, New Zealand) 

  • A riding or driving bit for a horse that has rein action which amplifies the pressure in the mouth by leverage advantage placing pressure on the poll via the crown piece of the bridle and chin groove via a curb chain. 

  • A raised margin along the edge of something, such as a well or the eye of a dome, as a strengthening. 

verb
  • To rein in. 

  • To bend or curve. 

  • To furnish with a curb, as a well; to restrain by a curb, as a bank of earth. 

  • To crouch; to cringe. 

  • To damage vehicle wheels or tires by running into or over a pavement curb. 

  • To check, restrain or control. 

  • To bring to a stop beside a curb. 

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