narrow vs taper

narrow

verb
  • To get narrower. 

  • To contract the size of, as a stocking, by taking two stitches into one. 

  • To reduce in width or extent; to contract. 

  • To convert to a data type that cannot hold as many distinct values. 

  • To partially lower one's eyelids in a way usually taken to suggest a defensive, aggressive or penetrating look. 

adj
  • Formed (as a vowel) by a close position of some part of the tongue in relation to the palate; or (according to Bell) by a tense condition of the pharynx; distinguished from wide. 

  • Having a small margin or degree. 

  • Parsimonious; niggardly; covetous; selfish. 

  • Having a small width; not wide; having opposite edges or sides that are close, especially by comparison to length or depth. 

  • Restrictive; without flexibility or latitude. 

  • Of little extent; very limited; circumscribed. 

  • Scrutinizing in detail; close; accurate; exact. 

noun
  • A narrow passage, especially a contracted part of a stream, lake, or sea; a strait connecting two bodies of water. 

taper

verb
  • To become thinner or narrower at one end. 

  • To diminish gradually. 

  • To make thinner or narrower at one end. 

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

noun
  • 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. 

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

adj
  • Tapered; narrowing to a point. 

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