ambition vs incentive

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. 

incentive

noun
  • Something that motivates, rouses, or encourages. 

  • A bonus or reward, often monetary, to work harder. 

adj
  • Inciting; encouraging or moving; rousing to action; stimulating. 

  • Serving to kindle or set on fire. 

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