item vs whatsit

item

noun
  • An object that can be picked up for later use. 

  • A question on a test, which may include its answers. 

  • Two people who are having a romantic or sexual relationship with each other. 

  • A line of text having a legal or other meaning; a separate particular in an account. 

  • A distinct physical object. 

  • A short article in a newspaper. 

  • A matter for discussion in an agenda. 

adv
  • likewise 

verb
  • To make a note of. 

whatsit

noun
  • A thing (used in a vague way to refer to something whose name one cannot recall, or that one is embarrassed to say) 

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