bore vs stare

bore

verb
  • To push forward in a certain direction with laborious effort. 

  • simple past tense of bear 

  • To make (a passage) by laborious effort, as in boring; to force a narrow and difficult passage through. 

  • To make a hole with, or as if with, a boring instrument; to cut a circular hole by the rotary motion of a tool. 

  • To push or drive (a boxer into the ropes, a boat out of its course, etc.). 

  • To be pierced or penetrated by an instrument that cuts as it turns. 

  • To form or enlarge (something) by means of a boring instrument or apparatus. 

  • To make a hole through something. 

  • To inspire boredom in somebody. 

  • simple past tense of bare 

noun
  • Something dull or uninteresting. 

  • A sudden and rapid flow of tide occurring in certain rivers and estuaries which rolls up as a wave. 

  • The tunnel inside of a gun's barrel through which the bullet travels when fired, or (by extension) its diameter. 

  • One who inspires boredom or lack of interest; an uninteresting person. 

  • Calibre; importance. 

  • A hole drilled or milled through something, or (by extension) its diameter. 

  • A capped well drilled to tap artesian water. 

  • The place where such a well exists. 

  • A tool, such as an auger, for making a hole by boring. 

stare

verb
  • To influence in some way by looking fixedly. 

  • To look fixedly (at something). 

  • To be very conspicuous on account of size, prominence, colour, or brilliancy. 

noun
  • A persistent gaze. 

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