make the cut vs pass muster

make the cut

verb
  • To succeed at something or meet a requirement; to be chosen out of a field of candidates or possibilities. 

pass muster

verb
  • To meet or exceed a particular standard. 

  • To adequately pass a formal or informal inspection. 

How often have the words make the cut and pass muster occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )