ploy vs red herring

ploy

noun
  • A tactic, strategy, or scheme. 

  • Sport; frolic. 

verb
  • To form a column from a line of troops on some designated subdivision. 

red herring

noun
  • A clue, information, argument etc. that is or is intended to be misleading, diverting attention from the real answer or issue. 

  • A herring that is cured in smoke and brine strong enough to turn the flesh red; a type of kipper. 

  • A red herring prospectus. 

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