nursing home vs ward

nursing home

noun
  • A place of residence for people who require constant nursing care and have significant deficiencies with activities of daily living, such as the elderly and younger adults with physical disabilities. 

ward

noun
  • A part of a hospital, with beds, where patients reside. 

  • The ridges on the inside of a lock, or the incisions on a key. 

  • The action of a watchman; monitoring, surveillance (usually in phrases keep ward etc.) 

  • An object used for guarding. 

  • A subdivision of the LDS Church, smaller than and part of a stake, but larger than a branch. 

  • A section or subdivision of a prison. 

  • An enchantment or spell placed over a designated area or social unit, that prevents any tresspasser from entering; approaching; or even being able to locate said protected premises or demographic. 

  • A guarding or defensive motion or position. 

  • Land tenure through military service. 

  • Guardianship, especially of a child or prisoner. 

  • A warden; a guard; a guardian or watchman. 

  • An area of a castle, corresponding to a circuit of the walls. 

  • An administrative division of a borough, city or council. 

  • A minor looked after by a guardian. 

  • A division of a forest. 

verb
  • To defend, to protect. 

  • To be vigilant; to keep guard. 

  • To fend off, to repel, to turn aside, as anything mischievous that approaches (usually followed by off) 

  • To act on the defensive with a weapon. 

  • To keep in safety, to watch over, to guard. 

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