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

Our research shows that people who endure hunger or lack shelter are left with feelings of injustice, a strong motivator for taking up arms. —Nafees Hamid, Foreign Affairs, 31 Jan. 2025

The fact that so many of his friends who used to be in the restaurant business have moved on, along with the ticking of time, was a motivator. —Laura Ness, The Mercury News, 19 Jan. 2025

Then Detroit started winning, and Decker and his teammates learned their coach was more than just a master motivator. —Zak Keefer, The Athletic, 15 Jan. 2025

There were multiple reasons for the move, but the high chance of recurrence was definitely one of my biggest motivators. —Eldiara Doucette, People.com, 9 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined above