driving force
44
4.1
- noun
- Consumers have often been the driving force behind the expansion of energy use.
- main driving force
- became a driving force
- driving force behind change
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Watch on YouTubeSo fear can be a driving force in these things.
- So fear can be a driving force in these things.
- You know, the driving force behind it was economics, right?
- What is the, you know, what is the driving force that compels you to tackle these challenges?
- Culture, society, and I understand that that is what was the driving force behind what they were doing.
- You cannot expect positive things, great blessings if negativity is the driving force behind what you're doing.
- But you have to say the ego can be a driving force.
- Like, I think just just getting out of your own head a little bit, getting, not making your ambition the primary driving force in your life.
- The driving force isn't the personal wealth, the driving force is to achieve your potential and to be successful, to be the best you can be.
- But that's not the driving force of each day.
Examples
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The government became the driving force behind the public relations.
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I think that's been the driving force behind me all these years.
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Culture, society, and I understand that that is what was the driving force behind what they were doing.
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So anyway, that has been a huge driving force in me.
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So fear can be a driving force in these things.
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So science has come up with a number of very powerful driving forces to improve living standards.
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Prior to 1985, the public sector was expected to be the main driving force for growth in India.
Academic text (1999) -
Cultural politics has been an important driving force in the evolution of style, particularly in the modern era.
Academic text (2013) -
He was the driving force behind the construction and programming of the Duluth Art Institute, which will now be named in his honor."
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Access to college has been the driving force in federal higher education policy for decades.
Synonyms
∞
2.3
Physical power that makes things move or break
182
1.0
A force that moves something away from you
166
3.0
A part that sends power to make a machine move
59
3.5
A person or thing that causes something to happen
59
6.2
A force that pushes something forward, like an engine or wind
52
5.1
The force that moves something forward, like the push from an engine
9
6.0
A person, force, or thing that causes action
1
7.0
A sudden force that makes something start moving faster
1
8.1
A force or feeling that makes people and things start moving
1
5.5
Energy that makes a machine like a car or train move
Antonyms
How Strong
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly built from 'driving' (causing or propelling) and 'force' (power or agency), so a learner who knows both words can infer 'the force that drives something.' This adjective+noun composition is common cross-linguistically and follows a transparent compositional pattern, making it readily understandable to a B1 learner.
Etymology
Driving force comes from the picture of an engine or strong wind pushing something forward: driving is the push and force is the power. So it means 'the reason or power that makes something move or happen'.