manipulate vs ply

manipulate

verb
  • To move, arrange or operate something using the hands 

  • To influence or control someone in order to achieve a specific purpose, especially one that is unknown to the one being manipulated and beneficial to the manipulator; to use 

  • To handle and move a body part, either as an examination or for a therapeutic purpose 

  • To influence, manage, direct, control or tamper with something 

ply

verb
  • To wield or use (a tool, a weapon, etc.) steadily or vigorously. 

  • To work at (something) diligently. 

  • To press upon; to urge persistently. 

  • To persist in offering something to, especially for the purpose of inducement or persuasion. 

  • To travel over (a route) regularly. 

  • To bend, to flex; to be bent by something, to give way or yield (to a force, etc.). 

noun
  • In two-player sequential games, a "half-turn" or a move made by one of the players. 

  • A layer of material. 

  • A bent; a direction. 

  • A strand that, twisted together with other strands, makes up rope or yarn. 

  • A condition, a state. 

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