motive power

American  

noun

1. any power used to impart motion; any source of mechanical energy.

2. Railroads. locomotives or other vehicles that supply tractive power.

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motive power British  

noun

1. any source of energy used to produce motion

2. the means of supplying power to an engine, vehicle, etc

3. any driving force

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Etymology

Origin of motive power

First recorded in 1615–25

Example Sentences

I provide the motive power, a.k.a. the push.

From Washington Post • Jul. 3, 2022

Panamera S no longer derives motive power from a naturally aspirated V8, though an uprated 440-horsepower version of that V8 soldiers along in the Panamera GTS.

From Forbes • Mar. 27, 2015

Gustave Whitehead in flight at an altitude of 4 meters with the motive power provided by a brawny assistant.

From Scientific American • Jun. 13, 2013

Some vehicles may lose motive power without warning due to a defective powertrain component, the torque converter output shaft.

From Reuters • Jan. 11, 2012

The stationary earth cannot be the source of that motive power, so the innermost sphere must be moved by the next sphere out.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife