early vs lapse

early

noun
  • A shift (scheduled work period) that takes place early in the day. 

adv
  • At a time before expected; sooner than usual. 

  • Soon; in good time; seasonably. 

adj
  • Near the start or beginning. 

  • Near the start of the day. 

  • Having begun to occur; in its early stages. 

  • At a time in advance of the usual or expected event. 

  • Arriving a time before expected; sooner than on time. 

  • Of a star or class of stars, hotter than the sun. 

lapse

noun
  • An interval of time between events. 

  • A decline or fall in standards. 

  • A common-law rule that if the person to whom property is willed were to die before the testator, then the gift would be ineffective. 

  • A pause in continuity. 

  • A marked decrease in air temperature with increasing altitude because the ground is warmer than the surrounding air. 

  • A fall or apostasy. 

  • A temporary failure; a slip. 

  • A termination of a right etc., through disuse or neglect. 

  • memory lapse 

verb
  • To fall away gradually; to subside. 

  • To slip into a bad habit that one is trying to avoid. 

  • To become void. 

  • To fall into error or heresy. 

  • To fall or pass from one proprietor to another, or from the original destination, by the omission, negligence, or failure of somebody, such as a patron or legatee. 

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