driven

adjective

Definition of driven

1 :having a compulsive or urgent quality

a driven sense of obligation

2 :propelled or motivated by something —used in combination

results-driven

—

drivenness

play \ˈdri-vən-nəs\ noun

See driven defined for English-language learners

Examples of driven in a Sentence

They are driven, successful people.
a man with a driven need to be loved or liked by everyone

Recent Examples of driven from the Web

Although, Handanovic was forced into making a difficult save, as substitute Khouma Babacar's driven effort was pushed wide of the post.

— SI.com, "Inter Milan 3-0 Fiorentina: Mauro Icardi Carries Inter to the Perfect Start," 20 Aug. 2017
Welser-Most and the orchestra gave the 1930 ballet excerpt a driven and dynamic reading, one that readily told a story of anxiety, seduction, magic, and triumph.

— zachary lewis, cleveland.com, "Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom surprises with Beethoven and delights with French delicacies (review)," 16 July 2017
Archie is an assistant at Ohio State, still so driven.

— gregg doyel, Indianapolis Star, "Doyel: A special friendship Archie Miller takes with him everywhere," 6 July 2017
Fighting among drug cartels that control the smuggling routes has led to record-high homicide rates and driven thousands of people to the U.S.-Mexico border seeking asylum.

— ron nixon, The Seattle Times, "Coast Guard faces widening mission and shrinking budget," 4 July 2017
Every SportWagen uses the same 170-hp turbocharged 1.8-liter inline-four engine, though the transmission and driven wheels vary depending on the model.

— annie white, Car and Driver, "2017 Volkswagen Golf SportWagen," 24 June 2017
But today's outrage comes amid a national dialog that appears to become more driven by backhanded tweets by the day.

— michael b. farrell, The Christian Science Monitor, "Shakespeare in the Park: When all the world's a stage for outrage," 13 June 2017
Hogan is just very, very driven to achieve what only a few hundred people have ever attempted.

— tod leonard, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Cyclists take off from Oceanside in grueling Race Across America," 13 June 2017
Just as Stephen Curry doesn't have to deal with a Jordan hand check on the perimeter, Jordan doesn't live in this age of 24-7, social-media driven news cycles.

— k.c. johnson, chicagotribune.com, "1995-96 Bulls vs. this season's Warriors: Comes down to defense," 8 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'driven.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of driven

see ¹drive

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1925

See Words from the same year

driven Synonyms

Synonyms

besetting, compulsive, impulsive, obsessional, obsessive

Related Words

irrepressible, uncontrollable; automatic, instinctive, involuntary, knee-jerk, reflex, spontaneous; conditioned, mechanical; unconscious, unthinking, unwitting; capricious, unpredictable, whimsical

Near Antonyms

unforced, voluntary, willful (or wilful); controllable, manageable, resistible

DRIVEN Defined for English Language Learners

driven

adjective

Definition of driven for English Language Learners

: very determined to succeed

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driven

Definition of driven

drivenness

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Origin and Etymology of driven

driven Synonyms

Synonyms

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DRIVEN Defined for English Language Learners

driven

Definition of driven for English Language Learners

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driven

Definition of driven

drivenness

From the M-W Editors

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