finesse vs skill

finesse

verb
  • To handle or manage carefully or skilfully; to manipulate in a crafty way. 

  • To play (a card) as a finesse. 

  • To obtain something from someone through trickery or manipulation. 

  • To evade (a problem, situation, etc.) by using some clever argument or stratagem. 

  • To attempt to win a trick by finessing. 

noun
  • An adroit manoeuvre. 

  • The property of having elegance, grace, refinement, or skill. 

  • In bridge, whist, etc.: a technique which allows one to win a trick, usually by playing a card when it is thought that a card that can beat it is held by another player whose turn is over. 

  • Skill in the handling or manipulation of a situation. 

skill

verb
  • To have personal or practical knowledge; be versed or practised; be expert or dextrous. 

  • To know; to understand. 

  • To have knowledge or comprehension; discern. 

  • To set apart; separate. 

  • To discern; have knowledge or understanding; to know how (to). 

  • To spend acquired points in exchange for skills. 

adj
  • Great, excellent. 

noun
  • Capacity to do something well; technique, ability. Skills are usually acquired or learned, as opposed to abilities, which are often thought of as innate. 

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