Fueled

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈfjuː.əld/

Definitions

1. Provided with a substance such as gasoline or other fuel to operate machinery or a vehicle ; inspired or driven by a strong emotion or influence
2. Supplied with energy by adding combustible material for operation ; stimulated or encouraged by a particular cause or passion
3. Received fuel to keep a device or engine running ; powered emotionally or mentally by a motivating factor

Etymology: "Fueled" is simply the past tense and past participle of "fuel," so its story is really the story of the verb. Fuel began in Middle English as "fuayle," borrowed from Old French "fouaille" or "feuaille," meaning firewood or kindling. That French word came from "feu," meaning fire, which descends from Late Latin "focus," a word that originally meant hearth, the fireplace at the center of a home. Latin "focus" is the same word that gave English "focus," and the connection is a neat one: the hearth was the point where a household's fire was kept, and the English sense of a central point grew from that same image. The word's journey from firewood to something a person can be "fueled" by is a shift from physical material to abstract energy. Once fuel meant the stuff that keeps a fire burning, it became natural to speak of anything that sustains momentum as fuel too. The adjective "fueled" carries both senses: a car or engine that has been filled up, or a person whose anger, ambition, or passion has been stoked.

Synonyms: powered, energized