as in motivational
serving or likely to arouse action or activity
The biggest motivating factor behind her decision to change jobs was the pay increase. The positive feedback he received was very motivating.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
as in encouraging
to rouse to action or activity
The presence of treats motivated the dogs to obey their owner's commands. They drove a campaign to motivate voters to show up to the polls.
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of motivating
Cbs Texas Staff, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2026
Sometimes that may include the language of a speech, verbalizing a vision and motivating others to move toward it.
—Rustin Dodd, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
The third factor motivating this type of heroic behavior was social ties.
—Catherine A. Sanderson, The Conversation, 3 Mar. 2026
Seeing this new generation rise is deeply motivating.
—Becca Brazil, Rolling Stone, 27 Feb. 2026
Luna is in your strict 10th house, motivating ferocious Mars in your committed 6th house.
—Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 25 Feb. 2026
Cap turns against his bestie, Iron Man, to protect Bucky, motivating the entire Civil War arc.
—Bethy Squires, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026
Decluttering your home may not be motivating on its own, but supporting charitable organizations, reducing landfill waste, and helping others find affordable essentials by donating to thrift stores often does the trick.
—Nafeesah Allen, Better Homes & Gardens, 19 Feb. 2026
The pressure to keep exile concealed—to keep it invisible—mounts when disclosing the reasons motivating the journey would put travelers at risk.
—Literary Hub, 18 Feb. 2026
Verb
Players said the team's resilience has been inspired by McKinney, who, despite the diagnosis, continued to bring energy and encouragement to practices, motivating the team to push forward.
—Cbs Texas Staff, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2026
Sometimes that may include the language of a speech, verbalizing a vision and motivating others to move toward it.
—Rustin Dodd, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
The third factor motivating this type of heroic behavior was social ties.
—Catherine A. Sanderson, The Conversation, 3 Mar. 2026
Seeing this new generation rise is deeply motivating.
—Becca Brazil, Rolling Stone, 27 Feb. 2026
Luna is in your strict 10th house, motivating ferocious Mars in your committed 6th house.
—Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 25 Feb. 2026
Cap turns against his bestie, Iron Man, to protect Bucky, motivating the entire Civil War arc.
—Bethy Squires, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026
Decluttering your home may not be motivating on its own, but supporting charitable organizations, reducing landfill waste, and helping others find affordable essentials by donating to thrift stores often does the trick.
—Nafeesah Allen, Better Homes & Gardens, 19 Feb. 2026
The pressure to keep exile concealed—to keep it invisible—mounts when disclosing the reasons motivating the journey would put travelers at risk.
—Literary Hub, 18 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for motivating
Adjective
-
The controversial coaching figure, known for his motivational speech and tactics as well as investigations into NCAA violations, denied knowledge of steroid use by the football team in 1990 during his Notre Dame tenure.—
Dessi Gomez,
Deadline,
4 Mar. 2026
-
The experience also includes all the classic staples of a company retreat, including absurd team-building exercises, a series of motivational speakers and, uh, a group ASMR session.—
Shania Russell,
Entertainment Weekly,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
In fact, the director was egging me on, encouraging me to go further with the hunching and muttering.—
Andrew Martin,
Vogue,
9 Mar. 2026
-
Benevolent Venus complements rule-minded Saturn in your 11th House of Friendship, encouraging clear agreements with your teams and friends.—
Tarot.com,
New York Daily News,
8 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Instead of forcing lasers to synchronize phases, the lantern simply merges their outputs efficiently.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Mar. 2026
-
The strikes on Chiyah were followed by more airstrikes on nearby areas, forcing Lebanese troops to close roads where al-Qard al-Hasan branches are located to ensure people's safety.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Illinois’ 78-72 win over Maryland on Sunday in the regular-season finale wasn’t the most inspiring outing as the Illini head into Big Ten Tournament play this week at the United Center.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
10 Mar. 2026
-
So to be able to team up with her role model is deeply inspiring for Cate.—
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Scotland captain Robertson rifled in a low shot from outside the penalty box 10 minutes into the second half to put Liverpool ahead and then Salah crashed home his enticing cross two minutes later.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Trump’s tariff agenda aimed to spark a blue-collar job boom by enticing companies to reshore manufacturing.—
Brian Cheung,
NBC news,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
In the end, Democratic voters appeared to side with Talarico’s argument that winning in Texas would require not only energizing the base but also persuading voters who have grown uncomfortable with Republican leadership.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
4 Mar. 2026
-
Scams and malicious actors could be waiting on the other end, with the intent of covertly persuading the call’s recipient to get involved in some kind of scheme.—
Daniel Fusch,
USA Today,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Mowing regularly and at the proper height promotes a lush, dense lawn by stimulating root growth and lateral shoot development.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
8 Mar. 2026
-
Another benefit of cutting rates would be stimulating the purchase of steel-heavy purchases like appliances and cars, Kopf said.—
Brian Cheung,
NBC news,
5 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Motivating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/motivating. Accessed 13 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
