commendation vs tribute

commendation

noun
  • A message of affection or respect; compliments; greeting. 

  • The act of commending; praise; favorable representation in words; recommendation. 

  • That which is the ground of approbation or praise. 

  • An award or recognition for performance; a medal. 

tribute

noun
  • An acknowledgment of gratitude, respect or admiration; an accompanying gift. 

  • A certain proportion of the mined ore, or of its value, given to the miner as payment. 

  • A payment made by one nation to another in submission. 

  • Extortion; protection money. 

  • An homage made in a body of work to another work or creator. 

  • A payment made by a feudal vassal to his lord. 

verb
  • To pay as tribute. 

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