I. ˈgōd noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English gode, from Old English gād goad, arrowhead, spear point; akin to Langobardic gaida spear, Old High German Gaido, a personal name, Old Norse gedda pike (fish), Sanskrit hinvati, hinoti he urges on, throws
1. : a rod pointed at one end or fitted with a spike and used to urge on an animal — see oxgoad
2.
a. : something that wounds or pricks like a goad : sting , thorn
French forts and … armies so near us will be everlasting goads in our sides — Benjamin Franklin
b. : something that urges or stimulates like a goad : spur , stimulus
insecurity, considered by some management people as the indispensable goad for workers' efficiency — Dun's Review
Synonyms: see motive
II. transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
1. : to drive with a goad or some other pointed instrument
bound them to the plow and goaded them onward with his lance — Charles Kingsley
2. : to drive, incite, or rouse as if with a goad
his editorials were so skillfully written that he often goaded the opposition to madness — W.E.Smith
knows what it is like to be goaded by technical problems into achieving new insights — J.L.Stewart
Synonyms: see urge