absence vs shortfall

absence

noun
  • Failure to be present where one is expected, wanted, or needed; nonattendance; deficiency. 

  • A state of being away or withdrawn from a place or from companionship 

  • The period of someone being away. 

  • Temporary loss or disruption of consciousness, with sudden onset and recovery, and common in epilepsy. 

  • Lack; deficiency; nonexistence. 

  • Lack of contact between blades. 

  • Inattention to things present; abstraction (of mind). 

shortfall

noun
  • An instance of not meeting a quota, debt, or monthly payment on a debt or other obligation, or of having an insufficient amount to cover such obligations. 

  • The amount by which a quota, debt, or monthly payment on a debt or other obligation is missed; the difference between the actual quota or debt and the lesser amount available to pay such obligations. 

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