as in incentive
something that arouses action or activity
fear of failing should be plenty of motivation to study for the test
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Recent Examples of motivation
Whatever their motivations for requiring a return to work (RTW), employers are running into resistance from the workers themselves.
—
Amy Lindgren, Twin Cities, 28 June 2025
The female directing duo provided greater motivation for Elio (Yonas Kibreab) to want to be abducted by aliens and strengthened his emotional arc.
—Bill Desowitz, IndieWire, 27 June 2025
But in Season 3, her big motivation became protecting the weaker woman here, Geum-ja, and Jun-hee’s newborn baby as well.
—Matt Minton, Variety, 27 June 2025
The next step is to win it, and that’s our motivation for next season.
—Greg O'Keeffe, New York Times, 21 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for motivation
Amy Lindgren, Twin Cities, 28 June 2025
The female directing duo provided greater motivation for Elio (Yonas Kibreab) to want to be abducted by aliens and strengthened his emotional arc.
—Bill Desowitz, IndieWire, 27 June 2025
But in Season 3, her big motivation became protecting the weaker woman here, Geum-ja, and Jun-hee’s newborn baby as well.
—Matt Minton, Variety, 27 June 2025
The next step is to win it, and that’s our motivation for next season.
—Greg O'Keeffe, New York Times, 21 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for motivation
Recent Examples of Synonyms for motivation
Noun
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Companies can offer discounts or incentives to customers to try to entice them to buy trips or vacations.—
Corina Vanek,
AZCentral.com,
7 July 2025
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The bill eliminates critical renewable energy incentives, redirects funding toward fossil fuels and nuclear power, and dismantles key progressive priorities of the Biden administration.—
Ed Gaskin,
Boston Herald,
7 July 2025
Noun
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But another member of the Southeastern Connecticut delegation who served as the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Aundre Bumgardner, D-Groton, said that the Plainfield proposal had been the primary impetus for the bill.—
Mark Pazniokas,
Hartford Courant,
9 July 2025
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Still, Streeter suggested that further pressure from the U.K. regulator could provide the impetus required to accelerate changes within the company.—
Karen Gilchrist,
CNBC,
8 July 2025
Noun
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Jason Bateman even offered Shepard some encouragement to lock it down.—
Rachel Flynn,
People.com,
12 July 2025
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What a torrent of encouragement and loving advice and undeserved flattery over the years!—
John Updike,
New Yorker,
11 July 2025
Noun
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Chinese markets were sharply higher in earlier trading, buoyed by signs of possible additional stimulus measures in China and Goldman Sachs Group’s upgrade of Hong Kong stocks to market-weight.—
Teresa Cerojano,
Chicago Tribune,
11 July 2025
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Using a tool to measure how patients perceive stimuli like temperature and touch, researchers in Germany found that women with lipedema had a lower pain threshold compared with other women.—
Francesca Gilbard,
NBC news,
10 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Motivation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/motivation. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
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