flipper vs pilot

flipper

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

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

  • A kitchen spatula. 

pilot

verb
  • To control (an aircraft or watercraft). 

  • To guide (a vessel) through coastal waters. 

  • To serve as the leading locomotive on a double-headed train. 

  • To test or have a preliminary trial of (an idea, a new product, etc.) 

noun
  • A person who steers a ship, a helmsman. 

  • A pilot light. 

  • A short plug, sometimes made interchangeable, at the end of a counterbore to guide the tool. 

  • A guide book for maritime navigation. 

  • A racing driver. 

  • An instrument for detecting the compass error. 

  • A person authorised to drive such a vehicle during an escort. 

  • Something serving as a test or trial. 

  • The heading or excavation of relatively small dimensions, first made in the driving of a larger tunnel. 

  • A sample episode of a proposed TV series produced to decide if it should be made or not. If approved, typically the first episode of an actual TV series. 

  • A person who is in charge of the controls of an aircraft. 

  • One who flies a kite. 

  • A cowcatcher. 

  • A person who knows well the depths and currents of a harbor or coastal area, who is hired by a vessel to help navigate the harbor or coast. 

  • A guide or escort through an unknown or dangerous area. 

  • A pilot vehicle. 

adj
  • Being a vehicle to warn other road users of the presence of an oversize vehicle/combination. 

  • Used to control or activate another device. 

  • Made or used as a test or demonstration of capability. 

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