taut vs unsteady

taut

adj
  • Strong; uncompromising. 

  • Containing only relevant parts; brief and controlled. 

  • Experiencing anxiety or stress. 

  • Under tension, like a stretched bowstring, rope, or sail; tight. 

  • Not flabby; firm, toned; (of a person) having a lean, strong body. 

  • Neat and well-disciplined; (by extension) efficient and in order. 

verb
  • To make taut; to tauten, to tighten. 

unsteady

adj
  • Lacking regularity or uniformity. 

  • Inconstant in purpose, or volatile in behavior. 

  • Not held firmly in position, physically unstable. 

verb
  • To render unsteady, removing balance. 

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