motivator

noun

mo·​ti·​va·​tor ˈmō-tə-ˌvā-tər 

plural motivators

: one that motivates or impels someone or something

a subconscious motivator of behavior

: such as

a

: a factor or situation that causes people to feel motivated to do something : incentive

Only a fool, though, would deny that money is a very real and basic need and, of course, a motivator of sorts.

—Robert W. Corl

Exercising with someone else … can be a motivator.

—Joanne Lannin

Andre Harris, without basketball as a motivator, had slipped back into bad habits academically.

—John Feinstein

b

: a person who motivates others

But Romo's not an enabler; he's a motivator, says [Jessica] Simpson. "If I'm not feeling good about myself, he'll say, 'Get your butt up and go to the gym then!'"

—Michelle Tan

Examples of motivator in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Money and fame and ambition were not the largest or sole motivators of her decision making and writing about that sort of life is a little more complicated than a traditional three-act success story. —Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 7 Oct. 2025

Hunger can be another motivator, especially if your feline associates certain times or behaviors with food. —Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Oct. 2025

New research reveals that a manager’s true value—for both individuals and their firms—lies not in being a great motivator or monitor, but in their ability to strategically place talent. —Virginia Minni, Harvard Business Review, 1 Oct. 2025

Toxic positivity can at first seem like a motivator, but over time can negatively affect team morale and productivity. —Mita Mallick, Big Think, 30 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined above