attribute vs element

attribute

noun
  • A semantic item with which a method or other code element may be decorated. 

  • That which is predicated or affirmed of a subject; a predicate; an accident. 

  • An object that is considered typical of someone or some function, in particular as an artistic convention. 

  • A word that qualifies a noun. 

  • A characteristic or quality of a thing. 

  • An option or setting belonging to some object. 

verb
  • To ascribe (something) to a given cause, reason etc. 

  • To associate ownership or authorship of (something) to someone. 

element

noun
  • One of the conceptual objects in a markup language, usually represented in text by tags. 

  • A small part of the whole. 

  • A required aspect or component of a cause of action. A deed is regarded as a violation of law only if each element can be proved. 

  • Atmospheric forces such as strong winds and rains. 

  • Any one of the simplest chemical substances that cannot be decomposed in a chemical reaction or by any chemical means and made up of atoms all having the same number of protons. 

  • An orbital element; one of the parameters needed to uniquely specify a particular orbit. 

  • One of the four basic building blocks of matter in theories of ancient philosophers and alchemists: water, earth, fire, and air. 

  • A basic, simple substance out of which something is made, raw material. 

  • The basic principles of a field of knowledge, basics, fundamentals, rudiments. 

  • One of the objects in a set. 

  • One of the simplest or essential parts or principles of which anything consists, or upon which the constitution or fundamental powers of anything are based. 

  • A small but present amount of a quality, a hint. 

  • A group of people within a larger group having a particular common characteristic. 

  • A factor, one of the conditions contributing to a result. 

  • Any of the teeth of a zip fastener. 

  • A component in electrical equipment, often in the form of a coil, having a high resistance, thereby generating heat when a current is passed through it. 

  • An infinitesimal interval of a quantity, a differential. 

  • The bread and wine taken at Holy Communion. 

  • A place or state of being that an individual or object is best suited to. 

  • One of the entries of a matrix. 

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