ambition vs wish

ambition

noun
  • An object of an ardent desire. 

  • 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. 

  • 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. 

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

wish

noun
  • The thing desired or longed for. 

  • An expression of such a desire, often connected with ideas of magic and supernatural power. 

  • A desire, hope, or longing for something or for something to happen. 

  • A water meadow. 

verb
  • To hope (for a particular outcome), even if that outcome is unlikely to occur or cannot occur. 

  • To recommend; to seek confidence or favour on behalf of. 

  • I wish I could go back in time and teach myself what I know now. 

  • To bestow (a thought or gesture) towards (someone or something). 

  • To desire; to want. 

  • To request or desire to do an activity. 

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