lateral vs wry

lateral

verb
  • To move (oneself or something) in a lateral direction. 

  • To execute a lateral pass. 

adj
  • Non-linear or unconventional, as in, lateral thinking. 

  • To the side; of or pertaining to the side. 

  • Affecting the side or sides of the body, or confined to one side of the body. 

  • Situated on one side or other of the body or of an organ, especially in the region furthest from the median plane. 

  • Acting or placed at right angles to a line of motion or strain. 

  • (of a consonant, especially the English clear l) Pertaining to sounds generated by partially blocking the egress of the airstream with the tip of the tongue touching the alveolar ridge, leaving space on one or both sides of the occlusion for air passage. 

noun
  • An object, such as a passage or a protrusion, that is situated on the side of something else. 

  • A sound produced through lateral pronunciation (such as /l/ in lateral). 

  • An employee hired for a position at the same organizational level or salary as their previous position. 

  • A lateral pass. 

wry

verb
  • To twist or contort (the body, face, etc.). 

adj
  • Deviating from the right direction; misdirected; out of place. 

  • Turned away, contorted (of the face or body). 

  • Dryly humorous; sardonic or bitterly ironic. 

  • Twisted, bent, crooked. 

noun
  • Distortion. 

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