motive

[moh-tiv] /ˈmoʊ tɪv/

noun

something that causes a person to act in a certain way, do a certain thing, etc.; incentive.

the goal or object of a person's actions:

Her motive was revenge.

(in art, literature, and music) a motif.

adjective

causing, or tending to cause, motion.

pertaining to motion.

prompting to action.

constituting a motive or motives.

verb (used with object), motived, motiving.

to motivate.

Origin

1325-75; (adj.) Middle English (< Middle French motif) < Medieval Latin mōtīvus serving to move, equivalent to Latin mōt(us) (past participle of movēre to move) + -īvus -ive; (noun) Middle English (< Middle French motif) < Medieval Latin mōtīvum, noun use of neuter of mōtīvus

Related forms

motiveless, adjective

motivelessly, adverb

motivelessness, noun

well-motived, adjective

Synonyms

1. motivation, incitement, stimulus, spur; influence, occasion, ground, cause. Motive, incentive, inducement apply to whatever moves one to action. Motive is, literally, something that moves a person; an inducement, something that leads a person on; an incentive, something that inspires a person. Motive is applied mainly to an inner urge that moves or prompts a person to action, though it may also apply to a contemplated result, the desire for which moves the person: His motive was a wish to be helpful. Inducement is never applied to an inner urge, and seldom to a goal: The pleasure of wielding authority may be an inducement to get ahead. It is used mainly of opportunities offered by the acceptance of certain conditions, whether these are offered by a second person or by the factors of the situation: The salary offered me was a great inducement. Incentive was once used of anything inspiring or stimulating the emotions or imagination: incentives to piety; it has retained of this its emotional connotations, but (rather like inducement ) is today applied only to something offered as a reward, and offered particularly to stimulate competitive activity: to create incentives for higher achievement. 2. See reason.

-motive

a combining form of motive:

automotive.

Examples from the web for motive

It's the crystallization of intention, motive and purpose that makes this event unique.
The purpose is to exchange ideas, and you deserve better than dealing with trolls whose motive is something other than that.
But notice that the motive once again is 'profit'.
These ulterior motives keep getting in the way of good engineering.
And my motive for writing in this situation seemed clear: money.
Scarcity is not the motive.
As with many crimes, the motive is believed to be money.
In the game of guessing another person's motives, understand that it's not a science.
Just like when some commits a crime, you look at motive.
The murder motive, once revealed, becomes simply a given.

British Dictionary definitions for motive

motive

/ˈməʊtɪv/

noun

the reason for a certain course of action, whether conscious or unconscious

a variant of motif (sense 2)

adjective

of or causing motion or action: a motive force

of or acting as a motive; motivating

verb (transitive)

to motivate

Derived Forms

motiveless, adjective
motivelessly, adverb
motivelessness, noun

Word Origin

C14: from Old French motif, from Late Latin mōtīvus (adj) moving, from Latin mōtus, past participle of movēre to move

Word Origin and History for motive

mid-14c., "something brought forward," from Old French motif "will, drive, motivation," noun use of adjective, literally "moving," from Medieval Latin motivus "moving, impelling," from Latin motus "a moving, motion," past participle of movere "to move" (see move (v.)). Meaning "that which inwardly moves a person to behave a certain way" is from early 15c.

adj.

late 14c., from Old French motif "moving" or directly from Medieval Latin motivus "moving, impelling," from past participle stem of movere "to move" (see move (v.)).

motive in Medicine

motive mo·tive (mō'tĭv)
n.
An emotion, desire, physiological need, or similar impulse that acts as an incitement to action. Also called learned drive. adj.
Causing or able to cause motion.