gift vs tribute

gift

verb
  • To give as a gift or donation. 

  • To give away, to concede easily. 

noun
  • Something given to another voluntarily, without charge. 

  • A talent or natural ability. 

  • Something gained incidentally, without effort. 

  • The act, right, or power of giving or bestowing. 

tribute

verb
  • To pay as tribute. 

noun
  • 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. 

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

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

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