motivate

/ˈməʊtɪveɪt/

verb

  1. To make someone want to do something by giving them encouragement, a reason, or a reward.

    B1

    transitive; motivate someone to do something; be motivated by somethingneutral

    • "My teacher motivates me to study harder."B1
    • "The coach's speech motivated the team to win the game."B2
    • "He was motivated by a desire to help his family."B1
    • "The findings motivated researchers to investigate the issue further."B2

Common mistakes

  • motivate someone doing something→motivate someone to do something

    Use the pattern “motivate someone to + verb.”

Collocations

motivate employeesmotivate studentsmotivate someonemotivate someone to actmotivate oneselfbe motivated by successhighly motivated

Word family

motivationmotivatedmotivatingmotivationalmotivator