pretend vs put on

pretend

verb
  • To claim, to allege, especially when falsely or as a form of deliberate deception. 

  • To feign, affect (a state, quality, etc.). 

  • To lay claim to (an ability, status, advantage, etc.). (originally used without to) 

  • To make oneself appear to do or be doing something; to engage in make-believe. 

noun
  • the act of engaging in pretend play. 

adj
  • Not really what it is represented as being; imaginary, feigned. 

put on

verb
  • To fool, kid, deceive. 

  • To assume, adopt or affect; to behave in a particular way as a pretense. 

  • To don (clothing, equipment, or the like). 

  • To initiate cooking or warming, especially on a stovetop. 

  • To perform for an audience. 

  • To organize a performance for an audience. 

  • Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see put, on. 

  • To bet on. 

  • To play (a recording). 

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