motivation
/ˈmoʊ.tə.veɪ.ʃən/noun
motivation is spelled M-O-T-I-V-A-T-I-O-N: 10 letters and 4 syllables. It appears 17 times per million words in written English, the 4,934th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, motivation means “Willingness of action especially in behavior” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of motivation is motivations.
How many letters and syllables are in motivation?
| Letters | 10: M-O-T-I-V-A-T-I-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 17 times per million words; the 4,934th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is motivation?
Motivation appears 17 times per million words in written English, the 4,934th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce motivation?
- UK /ˈməʊ.tɪ.veɪ.ʃən/
- US /ˈmoʊ.tə.veɪ.ʃən/
- US [ˈmoʊ.ɾə.veɪ.ʃn̩]
Motivation has 4 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-motivation.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of motivation
- motivations plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does motivation mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Willingness of action especially in behavior.
- 2
The action of motivating.
- 3
Something which motivates.
- 4
An incentive or reason for doing something.
- 5
A research rating that measures how the rational and emotional elements of a commercial affect consumer intention to consider, visit, or buy something.
The motivation scores showed that 65% of people wanted to visit our website to learn more about the offer after watching the commercial.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Motivation in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | motivation |
| German | Motivation, Motivierung |
| Portuguese | motivação , motivo |
| Spanish | motivación , motivante |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.