English > motivation: 3 senses > noun 1, Tops| Meaning | The psychological feature that arouses an organism to action toward a desired goal; the reason for the action; that which gives purpose and direction to behavior. |
|---|
| Example | "we did not understand his motivation" |
|---|
| Synonyms | motive, need |
|---|
| Narrower | ethical motive, ethics, morals, morality | motivation based on ideas of right and wrong |
|---|
| irrational motive | A motivation that is inconsistent with reason or logic |
| life | A motive for living |
| psychic energy, mental energy | An actuating force or factor |
| rational motive | A motive that can be defended by reasoning or logical argument |
| urge, impulse | An instinctive motive |
| Broader | psychological feature | A feature of the mental life of a living organism |
|---|
| Spanish | motivación, motivo, necesidad |
|---|
| Catalan | motiu, motivació, necessitat |
|---|
| Adjectives | motivational | of or relating to motivation |
|---|
| Verbs | motivate | give an incentive for action / action |
|---|