Synonyms1. motivation, incitement, stimulus, spur; influence, occasion, ground, cause.
Motive, incentive, inducement apply to whatever moves one to action.
Motive is, literally, something that moves a person; an
inducement something that leads a person on; an
incentive something that inspires a person.
Motive is applied mainly to an inner urge that moves or prompts a person to action, though it may also apply to a contemplated result, the desire for which moves the person:
His motive was a wish to be helpful. Inducement is never applied to an inner urge, and seldom to a goal:
The pleasure of wielding authority may be an inducement to get ahead. It is used mainly of opportunities offered by the acceptance of certain conditions, whether these are offered by a second person or by the factors of the situation:
The salary offered me was a great inducement. Incentive was once used of anything inspiring or stimulating the emotions or imagination:
incentives to piety; it has retained of this its emotional connotations, but (rather like
inducement ) is today applied only to something offered as a reward, and offered particularly to stimulate competitive activity:
to create incentives for higher achievement. 2. See
reason.