motivating

/ˈmoʊɾɪveɪɾɪŋ/

/ˈmʌʊtɪveɪtɪŋ/

When a basketball coach gives his team a motivating speech, the players walk away from it feeling full of enthusiasm, inspired to win the game. Motivating means "providing incentive or impelling to action."

Motivating can describe a talk or a force or a message of some kind, and in that case it's an adjective. It can also be used as a verb, as when your friend says, "My belly is so fat, it's motivating me to stop eating so much ice cream."

Definitions of motivating

1. adjective

   impelling to action
   “motivating arguments”

   synonyms: motivative, motive

   causative

   producing an effect
2. noun

   the act of motivating; providing incentive
   synonyms: motivation

   type of:

   act, deed, human action, human activity

   something that people do or cause to happen