motivation

[moh-tuh-vey-shuhn]

noun

1. the act or an instance of motivating, or providing with a reason to act in a certain way.

   I don't understand what her motivation was for quitting her job.

   Synonyms: impetus, cause, inducement, inspiration, motive

2. the state or condition of being motivated or having a strong reason to act or accomplish something.

   We know that these students have strong motivation to learn.

3. something that motivates; inducement; incentive.

   Clearly, the company's long-term motivation is profit.

Other Word Forms

• motivational adjective
• motivative adjective
• demotivation noun
• nonmotivation noun
• remotivation noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of motivation¹

First recorded in 1870–75; motive + -ation

Example Sentences

“China is at the starting point of the era of spiritual consumption, with diverse core consumption motivations for trendy products,” analysts at ZheShang Securities said in a research note.

Read more on Barron's

Without that motivation the project would flounder before it had even begun.

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For some visitors, the absence of staff collecting entrance fees was a great motivation to visit Yosemite.

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Then, as the story goes, Mangione’s photos were released, and the narrative shifted away from the motivation behind Thompson’s killing and toward his purported assassin’s appearance.

Read more on Salon

That calls into question some of the White House’s motivations.

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Related Words

• catalyst 
• desire 
• encouragement 
• impetus 
• impulse 
• incentive 
• inclination 
• interest 
• motive 
• reason 
• wish