beard vs veil

beard

noun
  • A barb or sharp point of an arrow or other instrument, projecting backward to prevent the head from being easily drawn out. 

  • The cluster of small feathers at the base of the beak in some birds. 

  • The appendages to the jaw in some cetaceans, and to the mouth or jaws of some fishes. 

  • In insects, the hairs of the labial palpi of moths and butterflies. 

  • The gills of some bivalves, such as the oyster. 

  • Long or stiff hairs on a plant; the awn. 

  • The curved underside of an axehead, extending from the lower end of the cutting edge to the axehandle. 

  • That part of the underside of a horse's lower jaw which is above the chin, and bears the curb of a bridle. 

  • A fake customer or companion, especially a woman who accompanies a gay man, or a man who accompanies a lesbian, in order to give the impression that the person being accompanied is heterosexual. 

  • The byssus of certain shellfish. 

  • Facial hair on the chin, cheeks, jaw and neck. 

verb
  • To boldly and bravely oppose or confront, often to the chagrin of the one being bearded. 

  • To take by the beard; to seize, pluck, or pull the beard of (a man), in anger or contempt. 

  • Of a gay man or woman: to accompany a gay person of the opposite sex in order to give the impression that they are heterosexual. 

  • Of bees, to accumulate together in a beard-like shape. 

  • To deprive (an oyster or similar shellfish) of the gills. 

veil

noun
  • A covering for a person or thing; as, a caul (especially over the head) 

  • A thin layer of tissue which is attached to or covers a mushroom. 

  • A cover; disguise; a mask; a pretense. 

  • A membrane connecting the margin of the pileus of a mushroom with the stalk; a velum. 

  • Anything that partially obscures a clear view. 

  • The calyptra of mosses. 

  • That which separates the living and the spirit world. 

  • An obscuration of the clearness of the tones in pronunciation. 

  • velum (A circular membrane round the cap of a medusa). 

  • Something hung up or spread out to hide or protect the face, or hide an object from view; usually of gauze, crepe, or similar diaphanous material. 

verb
  • To dress in, or decorate with, a veil. 

  • To conceal as with a veil. 

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