housing vs protective covering

housing and protective covering both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
housing	Yes	No	No	No
protective covering	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, protective covering is a hypernym of housing; that is, protective covering is a word with a broader meaning than housing:

housing: a protective cover designed to contain or support a mechanical component
protective covering: a covering that is intend to protect from damage or injury

Other hypernyms of housing include protection, protective cover.

housing (noun)	protective covering (noun)
structures collectively in which people are housed	the tough natural covering of some organisms
a protective cover designed to contain or support a mechanical component	a covering that is intend to protect from damage or injury
stable gear consisting of a decorated covering for a horse, especially (formerly) for a warhorse