gammon vs shear

gammon

verb
  • To lash with ropes (on a ship). 

  • To cure bacon by salting. 

  • To beat by a gammon (without the opponent bearing off a stone). 

noun
  • Backgammon (the game itself). 

  • A rope fastening a bowsprit to the stem of a ship (usually called a gammoning). 

  • A victory in backgammon achieved when the opponent has not borne off a single stone. 

  • A cut of quick-cured pork leg. 

  • A middle-aged or older right-wing, reactionary white man, or such men collectively. 

shear

verb
  • To cut, originally with a sword or other bladed weapon, now usually with shears, or as if using shears. 

  • To deform because of forces pushing in opposite directions. 

  • To make a vertical cut in coal. 

  • To transform by displacing every point in a direction parallel to some given line by a distance proportional to the point’s distance from the line. 

  • To remove the fleece from a sheep etc. by clipping. 

  • To cut the hair of (a person). 

  • To deprive of property; to fleece. 

  • To reap, as grain. 

  • To change in direction or speed. 

noun
  • A large machine use for cutting sheet metal. 

  • The act of shearing, or something removed by shearing. 

  • Wind shear, or an instance thereof. 

  • A transformation that displaces every point in a direction parallel to some given line by a distance proportional to the point’s distance from the line. 

  • The response of a rock to deformation usually by compressive stress, resulting in particular textures. 

  • A cutting tool similar to scissors, but often larger. 

  • Forces that push in opposite directions. 

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