motivate
Americanverb (used with object)
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motivates,
present (3rd person singular)
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motivated,
past participle, past
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motivating
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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motivatornoun
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demotivateverb (used with object)
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remotivateverb (used with object)
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nonmotivatedadjective
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unmotivatedadjective
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unmotivatingadjective
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well-motivatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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motivatesimple
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motivatessimple
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have motivatedperfect
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has motivatedperfect
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am motivatingprogressive
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are motivatingprogressive
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is motivatingprogressive
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have been motivatingperfect progressive
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has been motivatingperfect progressive
Past
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motivatedsimple
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had motivatedperfect
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was motivatingprogressive
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were motivatingprogressive
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had been motivatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of motivate
Explanation
To give someone the incentive to act in a certain way is to motivate that person. If you give your dad a food-processor for his birthday, you might motivate him to help out with the cooking. The verb motivate means to prompt or incite. By giving speeches on college campuses across the country, John F. Kennedy motivated a lot of young people to join the Peace Corps in the early 1960s. People are not always motivated in positive ways, however. When a crime is described as racially motivated, it means the perpetrators picked their victim because of the color of his skin.
Vocabulary lists containing motivate
List 5
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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.
See Examples For:
“How do we get from the Columbian Exchange to Al Qaeda? What would motivate people to create a terrorist group? Why would America be a target?” he asked his class.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
Some employers are likewise using breaks for gameplay as incentives to motivate workers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
But the ideas that motivate the new coalition repel parts of the old one.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
But with no access to the military inside Russia, it is a chance to assess the dynamics of this war and explore what might motivate the men fighting it.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
Well, I heard that one voice, the army guy, but that was my voice, just me trying to motivate myself.
From "It’s Kind of a Funny Story" by Ned Vizzini
“And if it hurts, hopefully it motivates those who are in power to make sure that when these things come to light, they put a stop to it.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
This link between thinking and doing serves a clear function – it motivates us to get the necessities for life.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 12, 2026
Her relationship frequently crosses boundaries, but Maddie permits it because the attention makes her feel good and motivates her disorder.
From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2026
"Seeing people not have the opportunity to achieve their dreams, that's what motivates and drives me, " she said, echoing an ethos that later became the foundation of the Mobos.
From BBC ● Jun. 5, 2026
Yegey in the Hall of the Thirty-Three today: “I unalterably oppose this blockade of grain-exports to Karhide, and the spirit of competition that motivates it.”
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
As much as Anthrax were driven this time by the desire to attract new fans, they were also motivated by many popular new metal albums — and not in a good way.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
But all that AI doomsday talk can make it hard to stay motivated for the daily grind.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026
The next match is the Champions League and something we can feel excited and motivated to play because we deserve to be there.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
Karp said his warning was not commercially motivated.
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
In one way, this became the most dangerous music ever written, because, despite being motivated by a devotion to self-denial and compassion, it undoubtedly inspired hatred.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
"We're competitors but we're also motivating each other, inspiring each other, pushing each other to do better in the races," she says.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
We don’t know what was motivating the solo juror who wanted to send Clancy to jail rather than to a psychiatric hospital.
From Slate ● Sep. 5, 2026
If a client wants to buy, he tries to understand what’s motivating the desire.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 2, 2026
Koch, Inc. encourages this by motivating employees through incentives.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
The arts, however, can be used effectively to augment this method, motivating students and appealing to their innate artistry and humanity.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
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.
