masquerade vs veil

masquerade

verb
  • To conceal (someone) with, or as if with, a mask; to disguise. 

  • To take part in a masquerade; to assemble in masks and costumes; (loosely) to wear a disguise. 

  • To pass off as a different person or a person with qualities that one does not possess; also, to make a pretentious show of being what one is not. 

noun
  • The act of wearing a mask or dressing up in a costume for, or as if for, a masquerade ball. 

  • An assembly of varied, often fanciful, things. 

  • An assembly or party of people wearing (usually elaborate or fanciful) masks and costumes, and amusing themselves with dancing, conversation, or other diversions. 

  • A cosplay event at which costumed attendees perform skits. 

  • An act of living under false pretenses; a concealment of something by a false or unreal show; a disguise, a pretence; also, a pretentious display. 

veil

verb
  • To conceal as with a veil. 

  • To dress in, or decorate with, a veil. 

noun
  • A thin layer of tissue which is attached to or covers a mushroom. 

  • A cover; disguise; a mask; a pretense. 

  • A membrane connecting the margin of the pileus of a mushroom with the stalk; a velum. 

  • Anything that partially obscures a clear view. 

  • A covering for a person or thing; as, a caul (especially over the head) 

  • The calyptra of mosses. 

  • That which separates the living and the spirit world. 

  • An obscuration of the clearness of the tones in pronunciation. 

  • velum (A circular membrane round the cap of a medusa). 

  • Something hung up or spread out to hide or protect the face, or hide an object from view; usually of gauze, crepe, or similar diaphanous material. 

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