flotation vs prop

flotation

noun
  • A state of floating, or being afloat. 

  • The ability (as of a tire or snowshoes) to stay on the surface of soft ground or snow. 

  • A process of separating minerals by agitating a mixture with water and detergents etc; selected substances being carried to the surface in air bubbles. 

  • The launching onto the market of a tranche of stocks or shares, usually a new issue. 

prop

noun
  • Any of the seashells in the game of props. 

  • The propeller of an aircraft. 

  • An item placed within an advertisement in order to suggest a style of living etc. 

  • An item placed on a stage or set to create a scene or scenario in which actors perform. 

  • An object placed against or under another, to support it; anything that supports. 

  • A proposition, especially on an election-day ballot. 

  • The player on either side of the hooker in a scrum. 

  • propellant (“rocket fuel”) 

verb
  • To support or shore up something. 

  • To play rugby in the prop position. 

  • To manually start the engine of a propeller-driven aircraft with no electric starter by pulling vigorously on one of the propeller blades using the hands, so that the propeller can catch ignition. 

  • To position the feet of (a person) while sitting, lying down, or reclining so that the knees are elevated at a higher level. 

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