shim vs taper

shim

noun
  • A thin piece of material, sometimes tapered, used for alignment or support. 

  • A small library that transparently intercepts and modifies calls to an API, usually for compatibility purposes. 

  • A kind of shallow plow used in tillage to break the ground and clear it of weeds. 

  • A small metal device used to pick open a lock. 

  • A person characterised by both male and female traits, or by ambiguous male-female traits; a hermaphrodite. 

  • A wedge. 

  • A transsexual person, especially a trans woman; (loosely) a drag queen or transvestite. 

verb
  • To fit one or more shims to a piece of machinery. 

  • To adjust the homogeneity of a magnetic field, after the mechanical devices once used for the purpose. 

  • To adjust something by using shims. 

  • To intercept and modify calls to (an API), usually for compatibility purposes. 

taper

noun
  • A tapering form; gradual diminution of thickness and/or cross section in an elongated object. 

  • A small light. 

  • A cone-shaped item for stretching the hole for an ear gauge (piercing). 

  • Someone who works with tape or tapes. 

  • A thin stick used for lighting candles, either a wax-coated wick or a slow-burning wooden rod. 

  • One who operates a tape machine. 

  • A slender wax candle. 

adj
  • Tapered; narrowing to a point. 

verb
  • To diminish gradually. 

  • To become thinner or narrower at one end. 

  • To make thinner or narrower at one end. 

  • (of a central bank) To tighten monetary policy. 

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