profit motive

noun

: the desire to make a profit
making decisions based on the profit motive

Examples of profit motive in a Sentence

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If anything, wearables provide an ulterior profit motive for insurance companies. — Andréa Becker, STAT, 14 Aug. 2026 Andreano said that creates a profit motive for forfeiture cases. — Evy Lewis, Chicago Tribune, 12 Aug. 2026 Separately, amounts lost to investment scams can be deductible because there was a profit motive on the part of the investor, which is treated differently under the theft-loss part of the tax code, experts said. — Sarah Agostino, CNBC, 18 July 2026 Democratic Socialists believe that the economy should not be driven by the profit motive but by the needs of society. — Franco Ordoñez, NPR, 10 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for profit motive

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“Profit motive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/profit%20motive. Accessed 2 Oct. 2026.

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