guillotine vs lance

guillotine

verb
  • To execute (someone) with a guillotine. 

  • To end (a legislative debate) by invoking cloture. 

  • To cut or trim (a body part, a stack of paper, etc.) with a guillotine. 

  • To end discussion (about a parliamentary bill or part of one) by invoking a guillotine procedure. 

noun
  • A device used for cutting the pages of books, stacks of paper, etc., to straight edges, usually by means of a hinged or sliding blade attached to a flat platform. 

  • A legislative motion that debate be ended and a vote taken; a cloture. 

  • A parliamentary procedure for fixing the dates when various stages of discussion of a bill must end, to ensure that the enactment of the bill proceeds expeditiously. 

  • An instrument with a sliding blade for cutting the tonsils, uvula, or other body parts. 

  • A machine used for the application of capital punishment by decapitation, consisting of a tall upright frame from which is suspended a heavy diagonal-edged blade which is dropped onto the neck of the person to be executed; also, execution using this machine. 

lance

verb
  • To pierce with a lance, or with any similar weapon. 

  • To throw in the manner of a lance; to lanch. 

  • To open with a lancet; to pierce. 

noun
  • A weapon of war, consisting of a long shaft or handle and a steel blade or head; a spear carried by horsemen. 

  • One of the small paper cases filled with combustible composition, which mark the outlines of a figure. 

  • A lancet. 

  • A spear or harpoon used by whalers and fishermen. 

  • A small iron rod which suspends the core of the mold in casting a shell. 

  • A wooden spear, sometimes hollow, used in jousting or tilting, designed to shatter on impact with the opposing knight’s armour. 

  • A soldier armed with a lance; a lancer. 

  • An instrument which conveys the charge of a piece of ordnance and forces it home. 

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