motif vs tile

motif

noun
  • A decorative figure that is repeated in a design or pattern. 

  • In a nucleotide or aminoacid sequence, pattern that is widespread and has, or is conjectured to have, a biological significance. 

  • A short melodic or lyrical passage that is repeated in several parts of a work. 

  • A decorative appliqué design or figure, as of lace or velvet, used in trimming. 

  • A basic element of a move in terms of why the piece moves and how it supports the fulfilment of a stipulation. 

  • The physical object or objects repeated at each point of a lattice. Usually atoms or molecules. 

  • A recurring or dominant element; an artistic theme. 

tile

noun
  • A rectangular graphic. 

  • Any of various flat cuboid playing pieces used in certain games, such as dominoes, Scrabble, or mahjong. 

  • A regularly-shaped slab of clay or other material, affixed to cover or decorate a surface, as in a roof-tile, glazed tile, stove tile, carpet tile, etc. 

verb
  • To seal a lodge against intrusions from unauthorised people. 

  • To protect from the intrusion of the uninitiated. 

  • To arrange in a regular pattern, with adjoining edges (applied to tile-like objects, graphics, windows in a computer interface). 

  • To optimize (a loop in program code) by means of the tiling technique. 

  • To cover with tiles. 

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