catalyst for action
- noun
- /ˈkætəˌlɪst fɔr ˈækʃən/
:
catalizador de acción
- The protest was a catalyst for action, inspiring community members to advocate for change.
Examples
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The arts are often a catalyst for action.
Blog text (14) -
Her speech served as a catalyst for action, motivating the audience to engage in environmental efforts.
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In this respect, Harms (2000) explained that the "widespread public awareness of recent child care research has served as a catalyst for action" (p. 3).
Academic text (2005) -
If we think such global goals are helpful catalysts for action, then we need to decide what the world wants these new global goals to be—and we need to decide how we will decide!
Blog text (1) -
The recent events may act as a catalyst for action in the push for new legislation.
Synonyms
55
5.0
A person or event that quickly causes an important change
1
7.0
A person or thing that makes something happen
1
8.5
A person or thing that makes something happen
A person or thing that makes changes happen faster
A person or thing that makes something more powerful and more likely
A person or thing that makes something happen
How Influential
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'an agent or event that provokes or speeds up activity' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'catalyst' (an agent that provokes change) with the prepositional relation 'for' and 'action' (taking practical steps). This noun + for + noun composition follows a straightforward compositional logic common across languages, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents should be able to infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Catalyst for action comes from chemistry, where a catalyst is a thing that makes a reaction happen faster without being used up. So calling someone or something a catalyst for action gives the image of a small cause that gets people moving quickly, which is why it means 'an agent that causes or speeds up change'.