Motivate Definition & Meaning

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    • Synonyms motivate American [moh-tuh-veyt] / ˈmoʊ təˌveɪt /

    verb (used with object)

    motivated, motivating

    1. to provide with a motive, or a cause or reason to act; incite; impel.

      Synonyms: cause, prompt, provoke, move, induce
    motivate British / ˈməʊtɪˌveɪt /

    verb

    1. (tr) to give incentive to

    "Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

    Other Word Forms

    • demotivate verb (used with object)
    • motivator noun
    • nonmotivated adjective
    • remotivate verb (used with object)
    • unmotivated adjective
    • unmotivating adjective
    • well-motivated adjective

    Etymology

    Origin of motivate

    First recorded in 1860–65; motive + -ate 1

    Example Sentences

    Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

    He took time to see "whether I'm motivated or it's the best decision for me" to return for the final year of his contract and "take on all of that responsibility".

    From BBC

    “A motivated user can still use tricks to get dangerous information out of them,” he said.

    From The Wall Street Journal

    Other cables labelled him a "symbol of kleptocratic government and violent politics" and accused him of being "phenomenally corrupt" -- claims he rejected as politically motivated.

    From Barron's

    Specious ones to the left, weird ones to the right—all arise from motivated reasoning.

    From The Wall Street Journal

    The trouble with most theories about conspiratorial schemes—the weird ones of 4chan and the specious ones of the faculty lounges—is that they arise from motivated reasoning.

    From The Wall Street Journal

    Related Words

    • drive
    • excite
    • galvanize
    • incline
    • inspire
    • persuade
    • prompt
    • propel
    • provoke
    • spark
    • spur
    • sway
    • trigger

    Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

    Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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