decay vs save

decay

noun
  • A deterioration of condition; loss of status or fortune. 

  • The process or result of being gradually decomposed. 

  • The situation, in programming languages such as C, where an array loses its type and dimensions and is reduced to a pointer, for example by passing it to a function. 

verb
  • To undergo bit rot, that is, gradual degradation. 

  • To deteriorate, to get worse, to lose strength or health, to decline in quality. 

  • To undergo optical decay, that is, to relax to a less excited state, usually by emitting a photon or phonon. 

  • Loss of airspeed due to drag. 

  • To undergo software rot, that is, to fail to be updated in a changing environment, so as to eventually become legacy or obsolete. 

  • To change by undergoing fission, by emitting radiation, or by capturing or losing one or more electrons; to undergo radioactive decay. 

  • To cause to rot or deteriorate. 

  • Of an array: to lose its type and dimensions and be reduced to a pointer, for example when passed to a function. 

  • To rot, to go bad. 

  • To undergo prolonged reduction in altitude (above the orbited body). 

save

noun
  • An instance of preventing (further) harm or difficulty. 

  • The act, process, or result of saving data to a storage medium. 

  • A saving throw. 

  • A successful attempt by a relief pitcher to preserve the win of another pitcher on one's team. 

  • In various sports, a block that prevents an opponent from scoring. 

  • A point in a professional wrestling match when one or more wrestlers run to the ring to aid a fellow wrestler who is being beaten. 

  • An action that brings one back out of an awkward situation. 

verb
  • To keep (something) safe; to safeguard. 

  • To spare (somebody) from effort, or from something undesirable. 

  • To redeem or protect someone from eternal damnation. 

  • To obviate or make unnecessary. 

  • To catch or deflect (a shot at goal). 

  • To store for future use. 

  • To economize or avoid waste. 

  • To preserve, as a relief pitcher, (a win of another pitcher's on one's team) by defending the lead held when the other pitcher left the game. 

  • To write a file to disk or other storage medium. 

  • To refrain from romantic or (especially in later use) sexual relationships until one is married or is with a suitable partner. 

  • To help (somebody) to survive, or rescue (somebody or something) from harm. 

  • To conserve or prevent the wasting of. 

  • To accumulate money or valuables. 

prep
  • Except; with the exception of. 

conj
  • unless; except 

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