motion

noun mo·tion \ ˈmō-shən \

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

Woulfe did not speak, but his lawyer, George Lenard, entered a motion to reduce his client's bond from $1 million to $250,000.

— zak koeske, Daily Southtown, "Man charged in fatal Beecher crash pleads not guilty; seeks bond reduction," 23 Aug. 2017
Lepore’s own stop-motion shorts often feature gender-ambiguous characters: mountain dwellers and narwhals, geometric shapes and adventure-seeking desserts.

— robert ito, Los Angeles Magazine, "These Female Animators are Redrawing an Industry’s Gender Lines," 18 Aug. 2017
Cunningham failed to get a second to his motion for reconsideration.

— steve dreyer, Pomerado News, "First Poway district maps to be unveiled Friday," 9 Aug. 2017
A hearing scheduled Monday to address pretrial motions was continued to await results of the competency evaluation.

— tony rizzo, kansascity, "Suspect in rape and killing of Overland Park woman to undergo mental exam," 7 Aug. 2017
Use your index finger to put it on using circular motions all around your eye.

— kathleen hou, The Cut, "The Secret to Getting Kristen Stewart’s Not-Too-Perfect Eye Makeup," 4 Aug. 2017
John Kelly’s ascent to chief of staff, in the wake of the Priebus defenestration, may have set into motion a game of civil-servant musical chairs—or perhaps something slightly more sinister.

— vanityfair.com, "Trump’s West Wing Shake-Up Is Getting Ugly," 3 Aug. 2017
One of the motions was to open the safe and get money, but the manager said the safe, which is on a timer, couldn't be opened for 10 minutes, according to charging documents.

— erika butler, The Aegis, "Former employee charged in Bel Air Taco Bell robbery," 1 Aug. 2017
Steven Spielberg's adaptation of Roald Dahl's children's novel is a charming fantasy led by a great motion-capture performance by Mark Rylance.

— nick schager, Esquire, "Here Are the Must-Stream Movies of August 2017," 28 July 2017

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

motion Synonyms

Synonyms

movement, move, shift, shifting, stir, stirring

Antonyms

motionlessness

Related Words

dislocation, migration, relocation; locomotion, mobility, motility, motivity; fiddling, fidgeting, squirm, squirming, twitching, wriggling, writhing; flailing, flapping, waving

Near Antonyms

immobility; inertia, inertness, stillness; cessation, discontinuance, ending, expiration, finish, halt, lapse, pause, shutdown, shutoff, stop, stoppage, surcease, termination

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

But, generally, no matter where Michigan motions an H-back or a second tight end or a even a sixth offensive lineman –

— nick baumgardner, Detroit Free Press, "Time to see if Michigan's new offensive line talent can provide a shot in the arm," 23 Aug. 2017
McCaffrey was lined up as an outside receiver, then motioned a few feet inward as the defense’s tone became urgent in calling checks to stay aware of his positioning.

— jourdan rodrigue, charlotteobserver, "Evolution of Panthers won’t be noticeable – until ball is in the back of the end zone," 1 Aug. 2017
The victim motioned to an off-duty bouncer filling up at the gas station, told him her name and that she had been kidnapped.

— dana littlefield, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Colorado man guilty of raping, kidnapping German SDSU exchange student," 15 June 2017
On Friday, the Justice Department motioned to dismiss that case.

— caroline bankoff, Daily Intelligencer, "D.C. and Maryland to Sue Trump for Earning Money from Foreign Governments," 12 June 2017
In the moments after last weekend’s match, teammate Dom Dwyer motioned for Abdul-Salaam to join him in an office bordering the locker room.

— sam mcdowell, kansascity, "Saad Abdul-Salaam adjusting to fewer minutes with Sporting KC," 9 June 2017
In response, BLB motioned for Ziober’s case to be handled in private arbitration, citing an agreement Ziober had signed while employed.

— josh eidelson, Bloomberg.com, "Lawmakers Ask Justices to Take Up Veterans' Workplace Rights," 24 May 2017
Scott Wheeler motioned for the driver to pull to the side of the road when the driver hit him along Route 32 near Route 1.

— andrew michaels, Howard County Times, "Howard police, families remember fallen officers during National Police Week," 4 May 2017
Benz, 25, a Naples resident, motioned for a deputy to stop his unmarked patrol car Friday night, according to the Naples Daily News.

— scott andera, ajc, "Florida man snorts cocaine in front of cops as wildfire rages," 24 Apr. 2017

Origin and Etymology of motion

see ¹motion

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

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motion

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Motion

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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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