motion

noun mo·tion \ ˈmō-shən \

Updated on: 21 May 2018

Definition of motion

1 a : 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

3 a : 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

6 a : 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

—

motional

play \ˈmō-shnəl, -shə-nᵊl\ adjective

—

motionless

play \ˈmō-shən-ləs\ adjective

—

motionlessly

adverb

—

motionlessness

noun

— in motion

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

See motion defined for English-language learners

See motion defined for kids

Examples of motion in a Sentence

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.

Recent Examples of motion from the Web

Played by Mark Consuelos, one of the most consistently handsome men on television, Hiram is a shadowy, ominous figure whose every move is suspect, and whose every motion is smooth as hell.

— joshua rivera, GQ, "Riverdale’s Mark Consuelos Is Ready for Your Thirst," 16 May 2018
The case file is very thin, essentially consisting of the criminal complaint and several motions and orders to continue.

— michael kiefer, azcentral, "Case of Mesa ammo dealer who sold to Las Vegas shooter remains in limbo," 16 May 2018
Women are often told to do Kegel exercises before and after birth, but that is just one repetitive motion.

— angela garbes, The Cut, "What If We Told Women the Truth About What Birth Can Do to Their Bodies?," 15 May 2018
Left fielder Mawrin Gonzalez, a natural shortstop, fielded and threw the ball in one motion quickly enough for Alex Bregman to tag out Maxwell.

— hunter atkins, Houston Chronicle, "George Springer's RBIs help secure Astros' victory over A's," 9 May 2018
After the Raptors tied it on the rookie OG Anunoby’s 3-pointer with eight seconds left, James took the inbounds pass, dribbled the length of the floor and in one motion dropped his 10-footer in front of Toronto’s stunned bench.

— New York Times, "N.B.A. Playoffs: LeBron James Beats Raptors at the Buzzer," 5 May 2018
In one motion Oladipo leaps backward and then rises for a 3-pointer that ties the score and silences the crowd.

— gregg doyel, Indianapolis Star, "Doyel: LeBron and Cavs get this one but moment coming for Pacers, Victor Oladipo," 29 Apr. 2018
In one motion, cut a halfmoon shape, separating the rind from the flesh.

— debbi snook, cleveland.com, "Earth Day Recipes: Use leftover cantaloupe in smoothies," 18 Apr. 2018
Holding the pan handle and plate with pot holders, flip the pan in one smooth motion.

— caleb barber, BostonGlobe.com, "Recipe: Try this big, golden cake of rice with a little ham and cheese tucked inside," 16 Apr. 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.

Origin and Etymology of motion

Middle English mocioun, from Anglo-French motion, from Latin motion-, motio movement, from movēre to move

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

motion Synonyms

motion

verb

Definition of motion

motioned; motioning play \ˈmō-sh(ə-)niŋ\

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

See motion defined for English-language learners

Examples of motion in a Sentence

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 of motion from the Web

New coordinator Mike McCoy likely will use Johnson in similar ways, including lining him up at receiver and motioning him out of the backfield.

— kent somers, azcentral, "Cardinals' David Johnson likes the idea of running behind a fullback," 15 May 2018
Martin allowed hits to three of the first four Indians to tie the game and quickly motioned to the mound after allowing a tie-breaking two-out RBI double to Jose Ramirez two batters later.

— jeff wilson, star-telegram, "Bullpen goes splat as Indians thwart Rangers' comeback bid | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 30 Apr. 2018
Mueller also brought the superseding indictment against Gates, but after his guilty plea, motioned to dismiss the additional charges.

— brooke singman, Fox News, "Special Counsel Mueller requests 35 subpoenas for witnesses to testify against Manafort," 11 Apr. 2018
Hogan was simply clearing the area for Danny Amendola, who motioned from the opposite side, caught a swing pass and glided for six yards.

— conor orr, SI.com, "Logan Ryan’s Unique Viewpoint of Tom Brady," 17 Jan. 2018
Catcher Austin Hedges motioned for a 1-1 fastball up in the zone.

— dennis lin, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Ryan Zimmerman's homer, missed opportunities sink Padres," 17 Aug. 2017
Rodriguez stretched his arms toward the packed sanctuary, motioning toward the rows of attendees dressed in red and black.

— melanie balakit, ajc, "Waffle House shooting victim DeEbony Groves sang ‘Jesus Loves Me’ before she was killed," 30 Apr. 2018
Their rivalry percolated in a preseason game in October, when Embiid motioned to the Heat bench to remove Whiteside, claiming Whiteside couldn’t guard him.

— barry jackson, miamiherald, "Weeks after teammates discussed Whiteside's complaints, Heat's center has much to prove," 13 Apr. 2018
On a third-and-nine play from the Carolina 43, the Panthers bunched three receivers to the left, and motioned Christian McCaffrey into the bunch—a smart personnel grouping by Carolina offensive coordinator Mike Shula.

— peter king, SI.com, "Wristband 145: Behind The Play That Confused The Patriots and Gave The Eagles The Super Bowl LII Win," 11 Feb. 2018

Origin and Etymology of motion

see ¹motion

First Known Use: 1747

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

motion Synonyms

Synonyms

beckon, flag, gesture, signal, wave;

Related Words

nod;

gesticulate, mime, pantomime, sign;

signalize;

acquaint, advise, inform, relate, tell;

flourish, shrug;

Motion

biographical name Mo·tion \ ˈmō-shən \

Definition of Motion

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

MOTION Defined for English Language Learners

motion

noun

Definition of motion for English Language Learners

: 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

Definition of motion for English Language Learners

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

MOTION Defined for Kids

motion

noun mo·tion \ ˈmō-shən \

Definition of motion for Students

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.

—

motionless

\-ləs\ adjective

She stood motionless.

motion

verb

Definition of motion for Students

motioned; motioning

: 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

Medical Dictionary

motion

noun mo·tion \ ˈmō-shən \

medical Definition of motion

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

2 a : an evacuation of the bowels

b : the matter evacuated —often used in plural

blood in the motions
—Lancet

Law Dictionary

motion

noun mo·tion

legal Definition of motion

1 : a proposal for action; especially : a formal proposal made in a legislative assembly

made a motion to refer the bill to committee

2 a : 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 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)

Origin and Etymology of motion

Anglo-French, from Latin motion-, motio movement, from movēre to move

motion

verb

legal Definition of motion

: move

motioned for a summary judgment

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See words that rhyme with motion Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for motion Spanish Central: Translation of motion Nglish: Translation of motion for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of motion for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about motion

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motion

Definition of motion

motional

motionless

motionlessly

motionlessness

Examples of motion in a Sentence

Recent Examples of motion from the Web

Origin and Etymology of motion

motion Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

motion

Definition of motion

Examples of motion in a Sentence

Recent Examples of motion from the Web

Origin and Etymology of motion

motion Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

Motion

Definition of Motion

Phrases Related to MOTION

Related Phrases

MOTION Defined for English Language Learners

motion

Definition of motion for English Language Learners

motion

Definition of motion for English Language Learners

MOTION Defined for Kids

motion

Definition of motion for Students

motionless

motion

Definition of motion for Students

Medical Dictionary

motion

medical Definition of motion

Law Dictionary

motion

legal Definition of motion

Origin and Etymology of motion

motion

legal Definition of motion

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