inert vs reactive

inert

adj
  • Unable to move or act; inanimate. 

  • Sluggish or lethargic. 

  • In chemistry, not readily reacting with other elements or compounds. 

  • Having no therapeutic action. 

verb
  • To fill with an inert gas to reduce the risk of explosion. 

noun
  • A substance that does not react chemically. 

reactive

adj
  • Characterized by induction or capacitance rather than resistance. 

  • that reacts or responds to a stimulus 

  • that readily takes part in reactions 

  • Reacting to the past rather than anticipating the future, not predictive. 

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