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/ˈməʊtɪv/ · noun
(obsolete) An idea or communication that makes one want to act, especially from spiritual sources; a divine prompting..
there's something in a woman beyond all human delight; a magnetic virtue, a charming quality, an occult and powerful motive.
Many of them at first seemed kind to him, but it turned out their motives were not entirely altruistic.
“Your job here is to find the good things in your colleagues—the things their state saw—and not focus on the bad.” I said I understand. “And, Joe, never attack another man’s motive, because you don’t know his motive.”
every joint and motive of her body
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.
“Why should Eldridge commit murder?[…]There was only one possible motive—namely, he wished to avoid detection as James Selby of Anaconda Ltd. […]”
If you listen carefully, you can hear the flutes mimicking the cello motive.
Use motive when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.
Motive means (obsolete) An idea or communication that makes one want to act, especially from spiritual sources; a divine prompting..
Common synonyms include motivation, motivate, moving, ambulatory.
The opposite depends on the specific sense.
there's something in a woman beyond all human delight; a magnetic virtue, a charming quality, an occult and powerful motive.
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