1
a
: having a compulsive or urgent quality
a driven sense of obligation
b
: determined to succeed : highly energetic and motivated
… a versatile yacht captained by a driven skipper who has won everything in the sport …—
Herb McCormick
Herb McCormickKinsey redoubled his efforts. If he had been driven before, now there was a manic quality to his work.—David Halberstam
David Halberstam2
: propelled or motivated by something
—used in combination
results-driven
a character-driven drama
drivenness
noun
He was born two months premature and she has never stopped asking herself whether it was her drivenness, her refusal to rest, that caused it.
—Michele Magwood
Michele Magwood
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 on the Web
The Folgore’s driven front wheels makes its steering heavier, whereas the Trofeo is rear-wheel drive.
—James Morris, Forbes, 15 Mar. 2025
And in both pieces, a theme is how driven Coach Hurley has been, and still is, by his failures as a player, even if he is now almost certainly destined to join his father in the Naismith Hall of Fame.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 13 Mar. 2025
Now, a good 25 years after it was written, The Last Five Years is getting its maiden run on Broadway, with Adrienne Warren playing Cathy, the promising young musical theater actress floundering in summer stock, and Nick Jonas as Jamie, the driven young writer hurtling toward literary stardom.
—Marley Marius, Vogue, 6 Mar. 2025
Mir, who works for his father’s legitimate business, completely unaware of the illegitimate one, is the smaller, more compact, more driven brother.
—Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for driven
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James Morris, Forbes, 15 Mar. 2025
And in both pieces, a theme is how driven Coach Hurley has been, and still is, by his failures as a player, even if he is now almost certainly destined to join his father in the Naismith Hall of Fame.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 13 Mar. 2025
Now, a good 25 years after it was written, The Last Five Years is getting its maiden run on Broadway, with Adrienne Warren playing Cathy, the promising young musical theater actress floundering in summer stock, and Nick Jonas as Jamie, the driven young writer hurtling toward literary stardom.
—Marley Marius, Vogue, 6 Mar. 2025
Mir, who works for his father’s legitimate business, completely unaware of the illegitimate one, is the smaller, more compact, more driven brother.
—Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for driven
Cite this Entry
“Driven.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/driven. Accessed 23 Mar. 2025.
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