Motive

• POS: Adjective, Noun, Verb (transitive)
• HYPHEN: mo=tive

CIDE DICTIONARY

Motive, n. [F. motif, LL. motivum, from motivus moving, fr. L. movere, motum, to move. See Move.].

•  That which moves; a mover.  Shak.  [1913 Webster]
•  That which incites to action; anything prompting or exciting to choise, or moving the will; cause; reason; inducement; object; motivation{2}.  [1913 Webster]

  "By motive, I mean the whole of that which moves, excites, or invites the mind to volition, whether that be one thing singly, or many things conjunctively."  [1913 Webster]
•  The theme or subject; a leading phrase or passage which is reproduced and varied through the course of a comor a movement; a short figure, or melodic germ, out of which a whole movement is develpoed. See also Leading motive, under Leading.  [1913 Webster]
•  That which produces conception, invention, or creation in the mind of the artist in undertaking his subject; the guiding or controlling idea manifested in a work of art, or any part of one.  [1913 Webster]

Syn. -- Incentive; incitement; inducement; reason; spur; stimulus; cause.

Motive, a. 

 Causing motion; having power to move, or tending to move; as, a motive argument; motive power.  Bp. Wilkins.  [1913 Webster]

Motive power (Mach.), a natural agent, as water, steam, wind, electricity, etc., used to impart motion to machinery; a motor; a mover.

Motive, v. t. 

 To prompt or incite by a motive or motives; to move.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Motive, n., adj., & v.
--n.
1 a factor or circumstance that induces a person to act in a particular way.
2 = MOTIF.
--adj.
1 tending to initiate movement.
2 concerned with movement.
--v.tr. = MOTIVATE.

Idiom

motive power a moving or impelling power, esp. a source of energy used to drive machinery.

Derivative

motiveless adj. motivelessly adv. motivelessness n. motivity n.

Etymology

ME f. OF motif (adj. & n.) f. LL motivus (adj.) (as MOVE)

THESAURUS

Motive

activating, active, actuating, aim, ambition, angle, animating, animus, antecedent, argument, aspiration, attraction, basis, burden, case, causal, causative, cause, chapter, compelling, concern, consideration, counsel, desideration, desideratum, design, desire, determinant, determination, device, directive, driving, effect, emotion, end, enticement, essence, feeling, figure, fixed purpose, focus of attention, focus of interest, function, gist, goad, goal, grounds, head, heading, idea, impellent, impelling, impulsive, in motion, incentive, incitement, inducement, inducive, influence, intendment, intent, intention, issue, kinetic, leitmotiv, living issue, lure, main point, matter, matter in hand, meaning, meat, mind, mobile, motif, motile, motivating, motivating force, motivation, motivational, motor, moving, nisus, object, objective, operative, passion, pattern, phrase, plan, point, point at issue, point in question, pressing, problem, prod, project, propellant, propelling, proposal, propulsive, propulsory, prospectus, pulsive, purpose, pushing, question, rationale, reason, resolution, resolve, rubric, sake, shoving, spring, spur, stimulation, stimulus, stirring, striving, study, subject, subject matter, subject of thought, substance, text, theme, thrusting, topic, transitional, traveling, urge, urgent, view, will

ROGET THESAURUS

Motive

Motive

N motive, springs of action, wellsprings of action, reason, ground, call, principle, by end, by purpose, mainspring, primum mobile, keystone, the why and the wherefore, pro and con, reason why, secret motive, arriere pensee, intention, inducement, consideration, attraction, loadstone, magnet, magnetism, magnetic force, allectation, allective, temptation, enticement, agacerie, allurement, witchery, bewitchment, bewitchery, charm, spell, fascination, blandishment, cajolery, seduction, seducement, honeyed words, voice of the tempter, song of the Sirens forbidden fruit, golden apple, persuasibility, persuasibleness, attractability, impressibility, susceptibility, softness, persuasiveness, attractiveness, tantalization, influence, prompting, dictate, instance, impulse, impulsion, incitement, incitation, press, instigation, provocation, inspiration, persuasion, suasion, encouragement, advocacy, exhortation, advice, solicitation, lobbyism, pull, incentive, stimulus, spur, fillip, whip, goad, ankus, rowel, provocative, whet, dram, bribe, lure, decoy, decoy duck, bait, trail of a red herring, bribery and corruption, sop, sop for Cerberus, prompter, tempter, seducer, seductor, instigator, firebrand, incendiary, Siren, Circe, agent provocateur, lobbyist, impulsive, motive, suasive, suasory, persuasive, persuasory, hortative, hortatory, protreptical, inviting, tempting suasive, suasory, seductive, attractive, fascinating, provocative, induced, disposed, persuadable, spellbound, instinct with, smitten with, infatuated, inspired, by, because, therefore, from this motive, from that motive, for this reason, for that reason, for, by reason of, for the sake of, count of, out of, from, as, forasmuch as, for all the world, on principle, fax mentis incendium gloriae, temptation hath a music for all ears, to beguile many and be beguiled by one, motive, springs of action, wellsprings of action, reason, ground, call, principle, by end, by purpose, mainspring, primum mobile, keystone, the why and the wherefore, pro and con, reason why, secret motive, arriere pensee, intention, inducement, consideration, attraction, loadstone, magnet, magnetism, magnetic force, allectation, allective, temptation, enticement, agacerie, allurement, witchery, bewitchment, bewitchery, charm, spell, fascination, blandishment, cajolery, seduction, seducement, honeyed words, voice of the tempter, song of the Sirens forbidden fruit, golden apple, persuasibility, persuasibleness, attractability, impressibility, susceptibility, softness, persuasiveness, attractiveness, tantalization, influence, prompting, dictate, instance, impulse, impulsion, incitement, incitation, press, instigation, provocation, inspiration, persuasion, suasion, encouragement, advocacy, exhortation, advice, solicitation, lobbyism, pull, incentive, stimulus, spur, fillip, whip, goad, ankus, rowel, provocative, whet, dram, bribe, lure, decoy, decoy duck, bait, trail of a red herring, bribery and corruption, sop, sop for Cerberus, prompter, tempter, seducer, seductor, instigator, firebrand, incendiary, Siren, Circe, agent provocateur, lobbyist, impulsive, motive, suasive, suasory, persuasive, persuasory, hortative, hortatory, protreptical, inviting, tempting suasive, suasory, seductive, attractive, fascinating, provocative, induced, disposed, persuadable, spellbound, instinct with, smitten with, infatuated, inspired, by, because, therefore, from this motive, from that motive, for this reason, for that reason, for, by reason of, for the sake of, count of, out of, from, as, forasmuch as, for all the world, on principle, fax mentis incendium gloriae, temptation hath a music for all ears, to beguile many and be beguiled by one.

Intention

N intent, intention, intentionality, purpose, quo animo, project, undertaking, predetermination, design, ambition, contemplation, mind, animus, view, purview, proposal, study, look out, final cause, raison d'etre, cui bono, object, aim, end, the be all and the end all, drift, tendency, destination, mark, point, butt, goal, target, bull's-eye, quintain, prey, quarry, game, decision, determination, resolve, fixed set purpose, settled purpose, ultimatum, resolution, wish, arriere pensee, motive, teleology, intended, intentional, advised, express, determinate, prepense, bound for, intending, minded, bent upon, at stake, on the anvil, on the tapis, in view, in prospect, in the breast of, in petto, teleological, intentionally, advisedly, wittingly, knowingly, designedly, purposely, on purpose, by design, studiously, pointedly, with intent, deliberately, with one's eyes open, in cold blood, for, with a view, with an eye to, in order to, in order that, to the end that, with the intent that, for the purpose of, with the view of, in contemplation of, on account of, in pursuance of, pursuant to, quo animo, to all intents and purposes, The road to hell is paved with good intentions, sublimi feriam sidera vertice.

Motion

N motion, movement, move, going, unrest, stream, flow, flux, run, course, stir, evolution, kinematics, telekinesis, step, rate, pace, tread, stride, gait, port, footfall, cadence, carriage, velocity, angular velocity, clip, progress, locomotion, journey, voyage, transit, restlessness, mobility, movableness, motive power, laws of motion, mobilization, moving, in motion, transitional, motory, motive, shifting, movable, mobile, mercurial, unquiet, restless, nomadic, erratic, under way, on the move, on the wing, on the tramp, on the march, eppur si muove, es bildet ein Talent sich in der Stille, sich ein Charakter in dem Strom der Welt.