ambition vs ettle

ambition

verb
  • To seek after ambitiously or eagerly; to covet. 

noun
  • Eager or inordinate desire for some object that confers distinction, as preferment, honor, superiority, political power, or fame; desire to distinguish one's self from other people. 

  • An object of an ardent desire. 

  • A personal quality similar to motivation, not necessarily tied to a single goal. 

  • A desire, as in (sense 1), for another person to achieve these things. 

ettle

verb
  • To aspire; be ambitious. 

  • To make attempt. 

  • To aim; purpose; intend; attempt; try. 

  • To take aim. 

  • To expect; reckon; count on. 

  • To direct one's course. 

noun
  • Intention; intent; aim. 

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