driving force

Idioms  

1. The impetus, power, or energy behind something in motion, as in He was clearly the driving force in the new administration. This term transfers the force that sets in motion an engine or vehicle to other enterprises. Ralph Waldo Emerson was among the first to use it figuratively (English Traits, 1856): “The ability of its journals is the driving force.”

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

driving force

McCreary says Brendan is often the driving force of their lyrical efforts, and “sometimes we co-write with other people. Claudio Sanchez wrote all the lyrics on ‘Sweet Misery.’

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

His work-rate is a driving force alongside his talent - remember his goal-saving challenge against Mexico.

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026

A driving force behind building the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center, Pritzker’s ancestors fled Russian persecution in modern-day Ukraine in the late 1800s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026

The Jogye Order, South Korea's main Buddhist order and a driving force behind the trend, is looking to make religion more "approachable", spokesman Monk Myojang told AFP.

From Barron's ● Jul. 7, 2026

The women were worried that without Marina’s driving force behind them, they would be disbanded.

From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein