5 uses
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Definition
to make someone want to do something
- The authors, as part of an appeals process, had examined four men convicted of seemingly unmotivated murders.4 — The Corner (52% in)
- The parents accepted what Nye implied-that parole violation and financial fraud were all that motivated his pursuit of their son.3 — Answer (11% in)
- But the prisoner had convinced himself that the young men, possibly motivated by a desire for adventure, meant to help him escape.4 — The Corner (16% in)
- Obviously, three of the murders Smith committed were logically motivated-Nancy, Kenyon, and their mother had to be killed because Mr. Clutter had been killed.4 — The Corner (55% in)
- Appointed by a Federal judge, and working without compensation (but motivated by a hard-held opinion that the defendants had been the victims of a "nightmarishly unfair trial"), Jenkins and Bingham filed numerous appeals within the framework of the Federal court system, thereby avoiding three execution dates: October 25, 1962, August 8, 1963, and February 18, 1965.4 — The Corner (93% in)
There are no more uses of "motivate" in In Cold Blood.
Typical Usage
(best examples)