faint vs tear

faint

noun
  • The act of fainting, syncope. 

  • The state of one who has fainted; a swoon. 

verb
  • To decay; to disappear; to vanish. 

  • To lose consciousness through a lack of oxygen or nutrients to the brain, usually as a result of suddenly reduced blood flow (may be caused by emotional trauma, loss of blood or various medical conditions). 

  • To lose courage or spirit; to become depressed or despondent. 

adj
  • Lacking strength; weak; languid; inclined to lose consciousness 

  • Performed, done, or acted, weakly; not exhibiting vigor, strength, or energy 

  • Slight; minimal. 

  • Barely perceptible; not bright, or loud, or sharp 

  • Lacking courage, spirit, or energy; cowardly; dejected 

tear

noun
  • That which causes or accompanies tears; a lament; a dirge. 

  • A rampage. 

  • A partially vitrified bit of clay in glass. 

  • A hole or break caused by tearing. 

  • A drop of clear, salty liquid produced from the eyes by crying or irritation. 

  • Something in the form of a transparent drop of fluid matter; also, a solid, transparent, tear-shaped drop, as of some balsams or resins. 

verb
  • To destroy or reduce abstract unity or coherence, such as social, political or emotional. 

  • To injure as if by pulling apart. 

  • To move or act with great speed, energy, or violence. 

  • To produce tears. 

  • To make (an opening) with force or energy. 

  • To become torn, especially accidentally. 

  • To rend (a solid material) by holding or restraining in two places and pulling apart, whether intentionally or not; to destroy or separate. 

  • To remove by tearing. 

  • To smash or enter something with great force. 

  • To demolish 

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