Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Motive
Mo′tive
,Noun.
1.
That which moves; a mover.
[Obs.]
Shak.
2.
That which incites to action; anything prompting or exciting to choise, or moving the will; cause; reason; inducement; object; motivation{2}.
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. J. Edwards.
3.
(Mus.)
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
. [Written also
motivo
.] 4.
(Fine Arts)
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.
Syn. – Incentive; incitement; inducement; reason; spur; stimulus; cause.
–
Motive
, Inducement
, Reason
. Motive is the word originally used in speaking of that which determines the choice. We call it an inducement when it is attractive in its nature. We call it a reason when it is more immediately addressed to the intellect in the form of argument. Mo′tive
,Adj.
Causing motion; having power to move, or tending to move;
“Motive faculty.” as, a
. motive
argument; motive
powerBp. Wilkins.
Motive power
(Mach.)
, a natural agent, as water, steam, wind, electricity, etc., used to impart motion to machinery; a motor; a mover.
Mo′tive
,Verb.
T.
To prompt or incite by a motive or motives; to move.
Webster 1828 Edition
Motive
MO'TIVE
,Adj.
MO'TIVE
, n.1.
That which incites to action; that which determines the choice, or moves the will. Thus we speak of good motives, and bad motives; strong and weak motives. The motive to continue at rest is ease or satisfaction; the motive to change is uneasiness, or the prospect of good.2.
That which may or ought to incite to action; reason; cause.3.
A mover. [Not in use.]Definition 2024
Motive
motive
motive
English
Noun
motive (plural motives)
- (obsolete) An idea or communication that makes one want to act, especially from spiritual sources; a divine prompting. [14th-17th c.]
- 1621, Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy, III.2.1.ii:
- there's something in a woman beyond all human delight; a magnetic virtue, a charming quality, an occult and powerful motive.
- 1621, Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy, III.2.1.ii:
- An incentive to act in a particular way; a reason or emotion that makes one want to do something; anything that prompts a choice of action. [from 15th c.]
- 1947, Malcolm Lowry, Under the Volcano:
- Many of them at first seemed kind to him, but it turned out their motives were not entirely altruistic.
- 1947, Malcolm Lowry, Under the Volcano:
- (obsolete, rare) A limb or other bodily organ that can move. [15th-17th c.]
- (Can we find and add a quotation of Shakespeare to this entry?)
- (law) Something which causes someone to want to commit a crime; a reason for criminal behaviour. [from 18th c.]
- What would his motive be for burning down the cottage?
- No-one could understand why she had hidden the shovel; her motives were obscure at best.
- 1931, Francis Beeding, chapter 10/6, in Death Walks in Eastrepps:
- “Why should Eldridge commit murder? […] There was only one possible motive—namely, he wished to avoid detection as James Selby of Anaconda Ltd. […]”
- (architecture, fine arts) A motif. [from 19th c.]
- (music) A motif; a theme or subject, especially one that is central to the work or often repeated. [from 19th c.]
- If you listen carefully, you can hear the flutes mimicking the cello motive.
Synonyms
- (incentive) motivation
- (creative works) motif
Translations
a cause to commit a crime
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music: theme or subject
arts: motif
Verb
motive (third-person singular simple present motives, present participle motiving, simple past and past participle motived)
Synonyms
Translations
to prompt or incite
Adjective
motive (not comparable)
- Causing motion; having power to move, or tending to move; as, a motive argument; motive power.
- 1658, Sir Thomas Browne, The Garden of Cyrus, Folio Society 2007, p. 195:
- In the motive parts of animals may be discovered mutuall proportions; not only in those of Quadrupeds, but in the thigh-bone, legge, foot-bone, and claws of Birds.
- 1658, Sir Thomas Browne, The Garden of Cyrus, Folio Society 2007, p. 195:
- Relating to motion and/or to its cause
Synonyms
Translations
causing motion
Relating to motion and/or to its cause
Anagrams
French
Verb
motive
- first-person singular present indicative of motiver
- third-person singular present indicative of motiver
- first-person singular present subjunctive of motiver
- third-person singular present subjunctive of motiver
- second-person singular imperative of motiver
Portuguese
Verb
motive
- first-person singular present subjunctive of motivar
- third-person singular present subjunctive of motivar
- first-person singular imperative of motivar
- third-person singular imperative of motivar
Spanish
Verb
motive