cleave vs shoehorn

cleave

verb
  • Followed by to or unto: to adhere, cling, or stick fast to something. 

  • To make or accomplish by or as if by cutting. 

  • To split. 

  • To split (a complex molecule) into simpler molecules. 

  • Of a crystal, to split along a natural plane of division. 

  • To break a single crystal (such as a gemstone or semiconductor wafer) along one of its more symmetrical crystallographic planes (often by impact), forming facets on the resulting pieces. 

  • To split or sever something with, or as if with, a sharp instrument. 

noun
  • Flat, smooth surface produced by cleavage, or any similar surface produced by similar techniques, as in glass. 

shoehorn

verb
  • To force (something) into (a tight space); to squeeze (something) into (a schedule, etc); to exert great effort to insert or include (something); to include (something) despite potent reasons not to. 

  • To use a shoehorn. 

  • To force some current event into alignment with some (usually unconnected) agenda, especially when it is fallacious. 

noun
  • A smooth tool that assists in putting the foot into a shoe, by sliding the heel in after the toe is in place. This reduces discomfort and damage to the back of the shoe. By slipping it into the back of the shoe behind the heel, the user prevents the heel from squashing down the back of the shoe and causing difficulty; instead the heel slides down the smooth shoehorn, which then comes out easily once the foot is in place. 

  • Anything by which a transaction is facilitated; a medium. 

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