dilute vs refine

dilute

verb
  • To become attenuated, thin, or weak. 

  • To cause the value of individual shares or the stake of a shareholder to decrease by increasing the total number of shares. 

  • To weaken, especially by adding a foreign substance. 

  • To make thinner by adding solvent to a solution, especially by adding water. 

adj
  • Of an animal: having a lighter-coloured coat than is usual. 

  • Having a low concentration. 

  • Weak; reduced in strength by dilution; diluted. 

noun
  • An animal having a lighter-coloured coat than is usual. 

refine

verb
  • To become pure; to be cleared of impure matter. 

  • To improve in accuracy, delicacy, or excellence. 

  • To purify of coarseness, vulgarity, inelegance, etc.; to polish. 

  • To make nice or subtle. 

  • To purify; reduce to a fine, unmixed, or pure state; to free from impurities. 

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