English
motivate
Motivate comes from Late Latin mōtīvum, from Latin moveō ‘to move, stir, set in motion’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *m(y)ewh₁-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*m(y)ewh₁-‘to move’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*m(y)owh₁éyetireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*moweō‘to move’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmoveō‘to move, stir, set in motion’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEmōtus
- Late Latinmodernmōtīvum
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500motif
- English1500–presentmotive
- Englishearliest quotation 2021motivate
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*m(y)ewh₁-‘to move’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*m(y)owh₁éyetireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*moweō‘to move’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmoveō‘to move, stir, set in motion’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEmōtus
- Late Latinmodernmōtīvum
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500motif
- English1500–presentmotive
- Englishearliest quotation 2021motivate
Earliest quotation: 2021, Drachinifel: “Armor-piercing shells were heading up the shell hoists, but…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *m(y)ewh₁- ‘to move’
through Proto-Indo-European *m(y)owh₁éyeti
through Proto-Italic *moweō ‘to move’
move, momentum, automobile, promoter, immobile, emotionless, 86 more
through Latin moveō ‘to move, stir, set in motion’
mobile, remove, auto, emotional, motor, promote, promotion, mobility, remote, emotion, mobilize, removable, mobilization, mobilise, mobilisation, emote, 65 more
through Latin mōtus
motif, motility, motile, 18 more
through English motive
Today it means
verb To provide someone with an incentive to do something; to encourage; to actuate.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *m(y)ewh₁- / motivate