motive
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motive
motivation; ground; cause; reason: Her motive was questionable.
Not to be confused with:
motif – recurring theme, subject, or idea: the motif of the song
Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree
mo·tive
(mō′tĭv)n.
1. An emotion, desire, physiological need, or similar impulse that acts as an incitement to action.
2. (mō′tĭv, mō-tēv′) A motif in art, literature, or music.
adj.
1. Causing or able to cause motion: motive power.
2. Causing an action: motive pleas.
[Middle English motif, motive, from Old French motif, from Late Latin mōtīvus, of motion, from Latin mōtus, past participle of movēre, to move; see meuə- in Indo-European roots.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
motive
(ˈməʊtɪv)n
1. (Psychology) the reason for a certain course of action, whether conscious or unconscious
2. (Art Terms) a variant of motif2
adj
3. of or causing motion or action: a motive force.
4. of or acting as a motive; motivating
vb (tr)
to motivate
[C14: from Old French motif, from Late Latin mōtīvus (adj) moving, from Latin mōtus, past participle of movēre to move]
ˈmotiveless adj
ˈmotivelessly adv
ˈmotivelessness n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
mo•tive
(ˈmoʊ tɪv)n., adj., v. -tived, -tiv•ing. n.
1. something that causes a person to act in a certain way, do a certain thing, etc.; incentive.
2. the goal or object of a person's actions: Her motive was revenge.
adj. 4. causing or tending to cause motion.
5. pertaining to motion.
6. prompting to action.
7. constituting a motive or motives.
v.t. 8. motivate.
[1325–75; (< Middle French motif) < Medieval Latin mōtīvus serving to move = Latin mōt(us) (past participle of movēre to move) + -īvus -ive]
mo′tive•less, adj.
syn: motive, inducement, incentive apply to something that prompts a person to action. motive is usu. applied to an inner urge that moves a person; it may also apply to a contemplated goal, the desire for which moves the person: Her motive was a wish to help. Money was the motive for the crime. inducement is used mainly of opportunities offered by another person or by situational factors: The salary they offered me was a great inducement. incentive is usu. applied to something offered as a reward or to stimulate competitive activity: Profit sharing is an incentive for employees.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
motive
Past participle: motived
Gerund: motiving
| Imperative |
|---|
| motive |
| motive |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Noun | 1. |  motive - the psychological feature that arouses an organism to action toward a desired goal; the reason for the action; that which gives purpose and direction to behavior; "we did not understand his motivation"; "he acted with the best of motives"psychological feature - a feature of the mental life of a living organism life - a motive for living; "pottery was his life" rational motive - a motive that can be defended by reasoning or logical argument irrational motive - a motivation that is inconsistent with reason or logic mental energy, psychic energy - an actuating force or factor |
| 2. | motive - a theme that is repeated or elaborated in a piece of music melodic theme, musical theme, theme, idea - (music) melodic subject of a musical composition; "the theme is announced in the first measures"; "the accompanist picked up the idea and elaborated it" | |
| 3. |  motive - a design or figure that consists of recurring shapes or colors, as in architecture or decoration | |
| Adj. | 1. | motive - causing or able to cause motion; "a motive force"; "motive power"; "motor energy" causative - producing an effect; "poverty as a causative factor in crime" |
| 2. | motive - impelling to action; "it may well be that ethical language has primarily a motivative function"- Arthur Pap; "motive pleas"; "motivating arguments" causative - producing an effect; "poverty as a causative factor in crime" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
motive
noun
1. reason, motivation, cause, ground(s), design, influence, purpose, object, intention, spur, incentive, inspiration, stimulus, rationale, inducement, incitement, mainspring, the why and wherefore Police have ruled out robbery as a motive for the killing.
adjective
1. moving, driving, motivating, operative, activating, impelling the motive power behind a boxer's punches
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
motive
noun1. A basis for an action or a decision:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
حَافِزٌدافِع، حافِز
motivpohnutka
motivbevæggrund
motiivimotivoidavaikutinaiheliike
motiv
indíték
tilefni
動機
동기
akstinasmotyvacijastimulas
iemeslsmotīvs
motív
motivnagib
motiv
เหตุจูงใจ
động cơ
motive
[ˈməʊtɪv]A. N → motivo m; (for crime) → móvil m
what can his motive have been? → ¿qué motivos habrá tenido?
my motives were of the purest → lo hice con la mejor intención
what can his motive have been? → ¿qué motivos habrá tenido?
my motives were of the purest → lo hice con la mejor intención
B. ADJ → motor (fem: motora/motriz)
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
motive
[ˈməʊtɪv] n (for doing sth) → motif m
One might question the motives of some politicians → On peut s'interroger sur les motifs de certains hommes politiques.
from the best of motives → avec les meilleures intentions du monde
One might question the motives of some politicians → On peut s'interroger sur les motifs de certains hommes politiques.
from the best of motives → avec les meilleures intentions du monde
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
motive
n
(= incentive, reason) → Motiv nt, → Beweggrund m; (for crime) → (Tat)motiv nt; the profit motive → Gewinnstreben nt; with the purest of motives → mit den besten Absichten
= motif
adj motive power/force → Antriebs- or Triebkraft f
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
motive
[ˈməʊtɪv]1. n (gen) → motivo, ragione f; (for crime) → movente m
from the best motives → con le migliori intenzioni
from the best motives → con le migliori intenzioni
2. adj → motore/trice
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
motive
(ˈməutiv) noun something that makes a person choose to act in a particular way; a reason. What was his motive for murdering the old lady?
ˈmotivate (-veit) verb to cause to act in a particular way. He was motivated by jealousy.
motiˈvation nounKernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
motive
→ حَافِزٌ motiv motiv Motiv κίνητρο motivo motiivi mobile motiv motivo 動機 동기 motief motiv motyw motivo мотив motiv เหตุจูงใจ sebep động cơ 动机Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009
mo·tive
n. motivo; ánimo, fuerza mayor.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012