explain vs mat

explain

verb
  • To make plain, manifest, or intelligible; to clear of obscurity; to illustrate the meaning of. 

  • To give a valid excuse for past behavior. 

  • To make something plain or intelligible. 

mat

verb
  • To cover, protect or decorate with mats. 

  • To form a thick, tangled mess; to interweave into, or like, a mat; to entangle. 

noun
  • A floor pad to protect athletes. 

  • A small flat piece of material used to protect a surface from anything hot or rough; a coaster. 

  • A flat piece of coarse material used for wiping one’s feet, or as a decorative or protective floor covering. 

  • A material or component needed for a crafting recipe. 

  • A thickly tangled mess. 

  • An alloy of copper, tin, iron, etc.; white metal. 

  • A thin layer of woven, non-woven, or knitted fiber that serves as reinforcement to a material. 

  • A thin surface layer; superficial cover. 

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