ambition vs quest

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. 

quest

verb
  • To seek or pursue a goal; to undertake a mission or job. 

  • To locate and attach to a host animal. 

  • To search for something; to seek. 

noun
  • A short test. 

  • A journey or effort in pursuit of a goal (often lengthy, ambitious, or fervent); a mission. 

  • The act of seeking, or looking after anything; attempt to find or obtain; search; pursuit. 

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