Dopamine
Etymology
A contraction of its chemistry: "DOPA" (dihydroxyphenylalanine, its precursor) plus "amine" (its chemical class). The clinical-sounding name is just an abbreviation of a long molecular one, coined in the mid-20th century.
noun · /DOH-puh-meen/
A brain chemical central to motivation, reward-seeking, and movement.
What it names
Reach for it when you mean the drive toward a reward — the wanting and pursuing, more than the enjoying.
Example
The unpredictable ping of notifications keeps a dopamine loop of checking and hoping running.
Related idea
Popular talk calls dopamine the "pleasure chemical," but research ties it more to wanting — anticipation and motivation — than to liking, the actual pleasure of getting something. That gap explains craving that outlasts enjoyment, the engine of much addiction.