'Ascendant' is a general term vaguely referring to powerful beings, whether it be physical power, force of will or some other form of extreme efficacy.
'God' is a term for any entity that is worshipped (or that was previously worshipped in the past).
Confusion between the two terms easily occurs because many gods are also Ascended beings - powerful people who developed a following that eventually became worship of the Ascendant, such as Shadowthrone. Likewise, there are also many gods who's physical entity is not a powerful Ascendant, or who may have no physical manifestation at all, such as Grallin. Typically, the gods with a weak or non-existant physical manifestation are regional or cultural-specific gods, not worshipped as widely as those who are also powerful Ascendants.
It is important to note whether an entity is considered a God or not may be circumstantial if the being is only worshipped by a small group or only in some regions. [Minor Spoilers, Highlight to Reveal:] For example, Anomander Rake is not considered by most to be a God, but is considered a God in Bluerose where he is worshipped as the Black-Winged Lord. Likewise, Icarium is worshipped only in Cabal and Dessembrae only by the Cult of Dessembrae. To their followers, these entities are gods, but not to most people.
Steven Erikson: are all gods ascendants? If you mean ascendant in the general sense of being very powerful, then yes. If you mean ascendant in terms of progression, then there are exceptions. Most of the animistic ones, for example (the totemic, tribal ones) derived from the act of worship, or the attribution of significance to a particular place.
(Q and A with malazanempire No 2 (2003))
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