motivated

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adjective

mo·​ti·​vat·​ed ˈmō-tə-ˌvā-təd 

: provided with a motive : having an incentive or a strong desire to do well or succeed in some pursuit

a motivated employee

Courses are being offered on college campuses for those who are highly motivated but who without such help often drop out and are lost to society and themselves.

—Carol Kort

In a sporting context, for example, athletes who consistently seem to play hard and rarely concede defeat are often described as highly motivated or "competitive" by the media.

—Robert C. Eklund

motivated

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past tense and past participle of motivate

Examples of motivated in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

In a lawsuit, DePodesta accuses the top federal prosecutor in Illinois of pushing politically motivated charges and blaming him when the cases unraveled. — Cybele Mayes-Osterman, Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2026

Weighill said she was motivated to vote on issues concerning the care of people with special needs in group homes because of her special-needs child. — Roger Simmons, The Orlando Sentinel, 3 Nov. 2026

Still, Smart's comments received some blowback, with some adding that Smart's doing pretty well financially, and that coaches have frequently displayed a financially-motivated lack of loyalty or commitment to stick with their teams. — Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 2 Nov. 2026

And among voters who aren’t highly motivated to show up, 51% call the economy their top issue, compared with 36% of the most motivated. — Phil Mattingly, CNN Money, 1 Nov. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1903, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing motivated

• self-motivated

Rhymes for motivated

• abdicated
• abrogated
• acclimated
• activated
• actuated
• adumbrated
• advocated
• aggravated
• aggregated
• agitated
• allocated
• alternated