fin vs flipper

fin

noun
  • A device worn by divers and swimmers on their feet. 

  • A hairstyle, resembling the fin of a fish, in which the hair is combed and set into a vertical ridge along the top of the head from about the crown to the forehead. 

  • A similar structure on the tail of a bomb, used to help keep it on course. 

  • The conning tower of a submarine. 

  • a five-pound (£5) note; the sum of five pounds. 

  • One of the appendages of a fish, used to propel itself and to manoeuvre/maneuver. 

  • An extending part on a surface of a radiator, engine, heatsink, etc., used to facilitate cooling. 

  • A sharp raised edge (generally in concrete) capable of damaging a roof membrane or vapor retarder. 

  • The finish, the end 

  • A similar appendage of a cetacean or other marine animal. 

  • A thin, rigid component of an aircraft, extending from the fuselage and used to stabilise and steer the aircraft. 

verb
  • To cut the fins from a fish, shark, etc. 

  • (Of a fish) to swim with the dorsal fin above the surface of the water. 

  • To swim in the manner of a fish. 

  • To provide (a motor vehicle etc) with fins. 

flipper

noun
  • A flat, wide, paddle-like rubber covering for the foot, used in swimming. 

  • Television remote control, clicker. 

  • A type of ball bowled by a leg spin bowler, which spins backwards and skids off the pitch with a low bounce. 

  • A flat lever in a pinball machine, triggered by the player to strike the ball and keep it in play. 

  • A kind of false tooth, usually temporary. 

  • A small flat used to support a larger one. 

  • Someone who flips, in the sense of buying a house or other asset and selling it quickly for profit. 

  • Someone who flips in any other sense, for example throwing a coin. 

  • In marine mammals such as whales, a wide flat limb, adapted for swimming. 

  • A kitchen spatula. 

verb
  • To lift one or both flippers out of the water and slap the surface of the water. 

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