as in diligent
having a strong desire for personal advancement
He was lauded by faculty as an exceptionally hardworking, curious, and motivated student. The company was looking for motivated self-starters to fill the sales position.
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as in encouraged
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.
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Recent Examples of motivated
Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2026
Cultural institutions and businesses looking to avoid controversy are motivated to embrace that scrutiny.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 11 Feb. 2026
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 6 Feb. 2026
But this time – they are also motivated by economic hardship.
—James Sneed, NPR, 6 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for motivated
Adjective
As Istanbul chief prosecutor, Gurlek had presided over high‑profile trials against several members of the main opposition party, the Republican People’s Party or CHP — proceedings that the opposition has long denounced as politically motivated.
—Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2026
Cultural institutions and businesses looking to avoid controversy are motivated to embrace that scrutiny.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 11 Feb. 2026
Verb
The private sector is ultimately motivated by profit.
—Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 6 Feb. 2026
But this time – they are also motivated by economic hardship.
—James Sneed, NPR, 6 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for motivated
Recent Examples of Synonyms for motivated
Adjective
-
The cases placed a spotlight on homeschooling, but some advocates said that homeschool parents are largely highly diligent about educating their children and should not be penalized for the other cases.—
Christopher Keating,
Hartford Courant,
8 Feb. 2026
-
The diligent work of our law enforcement partners time and again uncovers those attempting to hide behind a computer screen.—
Doug Myers,
CBS News,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Liu first laced up her skates at five, encouraged by her father, Arthur.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Those who noticed the earthquake are encouraged to report it through the USGS Felt Report form.—
CA Earthquake Bot,
Sacbee.com,
15 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
At halftime, Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny delivered an energetic performance featuring his biggest hits, powerful imagery and theatrical nods to songs and symbols from throughout his Spanish-language catalog.—
Alexandra Banner,
CNN Money,
9 Feb. 2026
-
The goal of the PUEO mission was to detect radio signals created when highly energetic neutrinos rain down onto the ice.—
Adam Harrington,
CBS News,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Then a week later, Heraskevych received a wave of sympathetic support when he was forced out of the skeleton for refusing to compete without a helmet adorned with more than 20 elite Ukrainian athletes and coaches who have been killed in the war.—
Kevin Baxter,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Scottie Barnes won the opening 12-minute game for the Stars with a game-ending 3-pointer in overtime, beating the World 37-36 after Edwards forced OT.—
Greg Beacham,
Twin Cities,
16 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Warner Bros is determined to get Wuthering Heights to an $80M-plus opening, and that might fluctuate with a lower domestic 4-day (mid $30M) and a better international (north of $42M).—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
15 Feb. 2026
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That means that Siqueira, recruiting coordinator Camilo Guerci and assistant coach Chen Abramovich are determined to sign as many as 16 new players by the time the 2026 season starts in August.—
Walter Villa,
Miami Herald,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Both juries rejected a defense argument that Alkayyali was under the influence of sudden passion, and would have considered a term of two to 20 years if they were persuaded by the argument.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Renato Renner of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich is not persuaded that resolving the conflict between the Copenhagen and many-worlds interpretations solves all the problems.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The team aimed to recreate this kind of dynamic control in a soft, synthetic material using digital design rather than complex biological systems.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Feb. 2026
-
The dynamic looks slightly different for photographer Swapnil Junjare.—
Nikita Khanna,
Vogue,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
While the Super Bowl ad is for Cadillac F1, Apple is poised to be just as big a beneficiary, if viewers are enticed to check it out.—
Alex Weprin,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Feb. 2026
-
That was the appetizer, as a year later, in 2022, Pitaro enticed Joe Buck and Troy Aikman from Fox — arguably the top NFL combo on air — on a pair of five-year deals for $75 million and $90 million, respectively.—
Andrew Marchand,
New York Times,
2 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Motivated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/motivated. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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