connote vs drop a hint

connote

verb
  • To express without overt reference; to imply. 

  • To possess an inseparable related condition; to imply as a logical consequence. 

  • To signify beyond its literal or principal meaning. 

  • To require as a logical predicate to consequence. 

drop a hint

verb
  • To reveal a clue or hint about something. 

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