justify vs whitewash

justify

verb
  • To give reasons for one’s actions; to make an argument to prove that one is in the right. 

  • To absolve, and declare to be free of blame or sin. 

  • To be a good, acceptable reason for; warrant. 

  • To qualify (oneself) as a surety by taking oath to the ownership of sufficient property. 

  • To arrange (text) on a page or a computer screen such that the left and right ends of all lines within paragraphs are aligned. 

  • To provide an acceptable explanation for. 

  • To prove; to ratify; to confirm. 

  • To show (a person) to have had a sufficient legal reason for an act that has been made the subject of a charge or accusation. 

whitewash

verb
  • To cover over errors or bad actions. 

  • In various games, to defeat (an opponent) so that they fail to score, or to reach a certain point in the game; to skunk. 

  • To paint over with a lime and water mixture so as to brighten up a wall or fence. 

  • To make over (a person or character, a group, an event, etc) so that it is or seems more white, for example by applying makeup to a person, or by discounting the participation of people of color in an event and focusing on only white participation. 

noun
  • The most basic type of thickening agent, flour blended with water to make a paste. 

  • A lime and water mixture for painting walls and fences bright white. 

  • A complete victory or series of victories without suffering any losses; a clean sweep. 

  • A campaign to paper over unfavorable elements. 

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