dredge vs strip mine

dredge

noun
  • Very fine mineral matter held in suspension in water. 

  • A mixture of oats and barley. 

  • A large shaker for sprinkling spices or seasonings during food preparation. 

  • A dragnet for taking up oysters, etc., from their beds. 

  • An iron frame, with a fine net attached, used in collecting animals living at the bottom of the sea. 

  • The act of dredging. 

  • A dredging machine. 

verb
  • To make a channel deeper or wider using a dredge. 

  • To bring something to the surface with a dredge. 

  • To sprinkle (food) with spices or seasonings, using a dredge. 

  • To unearth. 

strip mine

noun
  • A mine where the material above the ore is removed (stripped) to expose it for removal and use. 

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