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

"She is the driving force behind everything that we do and everything that I do, and we will be relentless," he said.

From BBC

The new findings point to magma rising from depth as the driving force behind the swarm.

From Science Daily

Hardenberg has for years been a driving force in trying to draw significant foreign investment to Greenland.

From The Wall Street Journal

McSweeney had been a key adviser to Starmer and was widely seen as having been the driving force behind Labour’s return to power in 2024 after 14 years of Conservative government.

From The Wall Street Journal

China has become a driving force behind the metals mania that has captivated traders around the world.

From The Wall Street Journal