motion

noun

mo·tion | \ ˈmō-shən

Definition of motion

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : an act, process, or instance of changing place : movement a pendulum in motion

b : an active or functioning state or condition set the divorce proceedings in motion

2 : an impulse or inclination of the mind or will the fundamental motions of humanity to good or evil— T. S. Eliot

3a : a proposal for action especially : a formal proposal made in a deliberative assembly made a motion that the meeting be adjourned

b : an application made to a court or judge to obtain an order, ruling, or direction His motion for a new trial was denied.

4 obsolete

a : a puppet show

b : puppet

5 : mechanism

6a : an act or instance of moving the body or its parts : gesture signaled with a motion of his arm

b motions plural : activities, movements taking advantage of the night to conceal his motions

7 : melodic change of pitch

in motion

American Football, of an offensive player : running parallel to the line of scrimmage before the snap

motion

verb

motioned; motioning\ ˈmō-sh(ə-)niŋ

Definition of motion (Entry 2 of 3)

intransitive verb

: to signal by a movement or gesture the pitcher motioned to the catcher

transitive verb

: to direct by a motion motioned me to the seat

Motion

biographical name

Mo·tion | \ ˈmō-shən

Definition of Motion (Entry 3 of 3)

Sir Andrew 1952– British poet; poet laureate (1999–2009)

Other Words from motion Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about motion

Keep scrolling for more

Other Words from motion

Noun

motional \ ˈmō-shnəl

, -shə-nᵊl \ adjective

motionless \ ˈmō-shən-ləs

\ adjective

motionlessly adverb

motionlessness noun

Synonyms & Antonyms for motion

Synonyms: Noun

move, movement, shift, shifting, stir, stirring

Synonyms: Verb

beckon, flag, gesture, signal, wave

Antonyms: Noun

motionlessness

Examples of motion in a Sentence

Noun

She has a simple golf swing with no wasted motion. the rhythmic motions of the waves He caught the ball and flipped it back to me in one fluid motion. The wax should be applied using a circular motion. He made hand motions to get our attention. She made a motion calling for the repeal of the law. Her motion was voted on. His lawyer filed a motion for a mistrial. The judge denied a motion to delay the hearing.

Verb

The guard motioned us through the gate. She motioned to her assistant. She motioned at the empty chair beside her and told me to sit down.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

That is why Hazan proceeds from the nude to the nude—from the showering painter, via a glimpse of his canvases, to a blue pool, its surface glittering, into which four young men, unclothed and unabashed, take a slow-motion plunge. — Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, "“The Dead Don’t Die” Does the Zombie Genre to Death," 14 June 2019 After Reeves was hired on to do motion-capturing and voice Johnny Silverhand, the developers adapted the character to fit his personality. — Shannon Liao, CNN, "Cyberpunk 2077 designer reveals what it's like to work with Keanu Reeves," 13 June 2019 With manufacturers constantly trying to one-up each other with better cameras and multi-lens arrays and motion sensors, there’s only so much room inside the phone to actually put things. — Chaim Gartenberg, The Verge, "Google and Apple are ushering in an era of ugly square phone cameras," 12 June 2019 The metal tubes in this park’s water feature form a tunnel with water spraying inside and from the ground — and a motion sensor that activates the water feature on a random circuit. — Lisa Herendeen, The Mercury News, "16 Splash Pads in the SF Bay Area keep kids cool," 12 June 2019 The Elite Active 65t have a motion sensor inside and an IP-56 rating that protects it from sweat and dust. — Valentina Palladino And Jeff Dunn, Ars Technica, "Guidemaster: Ars picks 11 gifts you can get Dad for Father’s Day 2019," 11 June 2019 Among the inventory items were: a DVR, a carbon monoxide detector, eight cameras, two alarm panels, a motion sensor and a sump pump alarm along with other items. — Christina Hall, Detroit Free Press, "Police sought Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith's cell phone, computer in raid at office," 10 June 2019 However, this tiny motion detector only really measures one aspect of your sleep cycle: movement. — Brittany Vincent, Popular Mechanics, "Why Pokémon Wants to Gamify Your Sleep," 30 May 2019 Grainy cameras and walkie-talkie-like devices are being upstaged by motion sensors that clip onto diapers or slip beneath mattresses, cameras that track breathing patterns and socks... — Julie Jargon, WSJ, "Do the Latest Baby Monitors Ease Fears or Add Anxiety?," 9 Apr. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Greinke motioned to the training staff during the first inning of Friday night’s 8-7 win over the Dodgers. — Nick Piecoro, azcentral, "Zack Greinke’s back not major concern for Diamondbacks," 14 Apr. 2018 Green motioned toward an official and said something that drew the technical call. — Christopher Dabe, NOLA.com, "Draymond Green draws first technical foul of playoffs in Game 4 vs. Pelicans," 6 May 2018 Translucent balloon bubbles floated from the ceiling and ocean blue lights splashed the room, where smiling mermaids motioned revelers to the dining room—more The Little Mermaid than The Shape of Water. — Lauren Sanchez, Vogue, "Last Night’s Breast Cancer Research Foundation’s Hot Pink Party Was a Family Affair," 18 May 2018 Shanahan’s difference-makers, however, tend to be running backs and tight ends, since his scheme is so crafty in shifting and motioning those players before the snap. — Andy Benoit, SI.com, "NFL Draft Needs: All 32 Teams," 25 Apr. 2018 Cellphone video appears to show the lead singer motioning toward a fan in the crowd, before removing his guitar and jumping off stage. — Benjamin Brown, Fox News, "Trump supporter says he took beating after protesting Social Distortion singer's politics," 16 Aug. 2018 Bale took a step back, motioning to the net and got a spin on it. — SI.com, "Watch: Gareth Bale Scores Insane Bicycle-Kick Goal in Champions League Final," 26 May 2018 Barrett, who lined up predominantly at receiver, motioned into the backfield a few times and finished with four carries for 39 yards, including a 23-yarder to open the second half. — Tom Green, AL.com, "Assessing Auburn's running back competition after A-Day," 7 Apr. 2018 Cantor says, motioning to the lowest part of her back. — David Nash, Town & Country, "James Galanos and the Integrity of 20th Century Fashion," 6 Nov. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'motion.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about motion

Dictionary Entries near motion

motion and time study

Statistics for motion

Last Updated

17 Jun 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for motion

The first known use of motion was in the 14th century

See more words from the same century

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for motion

motion

noun

English Language Learners Definition of motion

(Entry 1 of 2)

: an act or process of moving

: a movement of your body or of a part of your body

: a formal suggestion or proposal that is made at a meeting for something to be done

motion

verb

English Language Learners Definition of motion (Entry 2 of 2)

: to make a movement of your hand, head, etc., that tells someone to move or act in a certain way

See the full definition for motion in the English Language Learners Dictionary

motion

noun

mo·tion | \ ˈmō-shən

Kids Definition of motion

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : an act or process of changing place or position : movement We felt the swaying motion of the train.

2 : a movement of the body or its parts … the motion of his arms was not unlike the flapping of a pair of wings.— Washington Irving, “Sleepy Hollow”

3 : a formal plan or suggestion for action offered according to the rules of a meeting She made a motion to adjourn.

motion

verb

motioned; motioning

Kids Definition of motion (Entry 2 of 2)

: to direct or signal by a movement or sign Instantly she set the bird down and motioned everyone away …— Carolyn Keene, The Double Jinx Mystery

motion

noun

mo·tion | \ ˈmō-shən

Medical Definition of motion

1 : an act, process, or instance of changing place : movement

2a : an evacuation of the bowels

b : the matter evacuated —often used in plural blood in the motions — Lancet

Keep scrolling for more

motion

noun

mo·tion

Legal Definition of motion

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a proposal for action especially : a formal proposal made in a legislative assembly made a motion to refer the bill to committee

2a : an application made to a court or judge to obtain an order, ruling, or direction a motion to arrest judgment also : a document containing such an application

b : the initiative of a court to issue an order, ruling, or direction the court is given discretion to order a pretrial conference either on its own motion or at the request of a party— J. H. Friedenthal et al.

— motion for a more definite statement

: a motion that is filed before an answer and that requests the court to order the plaintiff to clarify allegations in the complaint because the claims are so vague or ambiguous that an answer cannot reasonably be framed

— motion for judgment on the pleadings

: a motion made after pleadings have been entered that requests the court to issue a judgment at that point — compare summary judgment at judgment sense 1a

Note: Under Rule 12(d) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, if matters outside of the pleadings are presented to the court when a motion for judgment on the pleadings is made, the motion will be treated as a motion for summary judgment.

— motion in limine \ -in-ˈli-mə-nē \

: a usually pretrial motion that requests the court to issue an interlocutory order which prevents an opposing party from introducing or referring to potentially irrelevant, prejudicial, or otherwise generally inadmissible evidence until the court has finally ruled on its admissibility

— motion to strike

1 : a motion in a civil trial to remove from a pleading an insufficient defense or any redundant, immaterial, impertinent, or scandalous matter

2 : a motion in a criminal trial to exclude evidence from the record

— motion to suppress

: a pretrial motion requesting the court to exclude evidence that was obtained illegally and especially in violation of Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendment protections

— omnibus motion \ ˈäm-ni-bəs- \

: a motion that makes multiple requests filing an omnibus motion to dismiss and for a more definite statement — Department of Ins. of Florida v. Coopers & Lybrand, 570 So. 2d 369 (1990)