animating force

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Carbon, he notes, is after all the building block of life, the animating force behind trees, rhinos, eyelashes, hormones, bamboo, and so much more.

From Salon • Mar. 24, 2025

In that sense, the cello, in both design and execution, was very much the piece’s animating force, passing through light and shadow, and knowing something of both.

From New York Times • Apr. 26, 2023

I’ve been trying to cut to, like, the animating force here, and I think that distrust is at the heart of it.

From Slate • Mar. 16, 2023

But behind the scenes, Ted’s opinion continued to serve as the animating force — including, according to multiple people familiar with the family’s thinking, the decision to explore a sale.

From Washington Post • Feb. 16, 2023

For all that, Lawrence remained unmistakably the animating force at Livermore, which soon acquired the operational features of a classic Lawrence laboratory.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik