driving force

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.”

Example Sentences

A third driving force is to beat China, whose control over some materials and manufacturing processes has exposed critical national security weaknesses for the U.S. amid trade tensions.

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A third driving force is to beat China, whose control over some materials and manufacturing processes has exposed critical national security weaknesses for the U.S. amid trade tensions.

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But it’s clear that Ellison, a hands-on leader, has given the co-CEO structure his blessing though he remains a driving force.

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Critics of the group say that the RSS has been the driving force behind campaigns that have fanned religious divisions and sectarian violence in India.

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Economists have called this "the China shock" and it's been one of the driving forces behind the rise of populist parties in former industrial parts of Europe and the United States.

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