What does "motile" mean?
A person whose prevailing mental imagery takes the form of inner feelings of action, such as incipient pronunciation of words, muscular innervations, etc.
Motile
/ˈməʊtaɪl/ adj, noun
adj, noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A person whose prevailing mental imagery takes the form of inner feelings of action, such as incipient pronunciation of words, muscular innervations, etc.
- Grammar: motile is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: active, animal like protists, driving, flagellated.
- Useful contrasts: adynamic, drifting organisms, immobile.
- Usage evidence: The gametes produced by the male are motile.
How to use "motile"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "motile" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "motile" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "motile" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "motile" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "motile" is acting as adj, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "active" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "motile", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A person whose prevailing mental imagery takes the form of inner feelings of action, such as incipient pronunciation of words, muscular innervations, etc.
- 2 one whose prevailing mental imagery takes the form of inner feelings of action wordnet
Adjective
- 1 In organisms: having the power to move spontaneously.
"1914 Shelford, Victor E.: The American Naturalist: Comparison of the Responses of Sessile and Motile Plants and Animals Sessile organisms are those which are sedentary in habit, whether attached or possessing slight powers of locomotion. Motile organisms are those that habitually move about. Vagile or creeping forms as well as swimming, walking, flying, burrowing types are included. Most sessile animals are capable of moving their parts, while only a few sessile plants possess this capacity, and these only to a slight degree. There is no sharp distinction between sessile (sedentary) and motile organisms. Every possible gradation exists between fixed non-motile types as trees on the one hand and the pelagic fishes on the other."
- 2 In organs or organelles: capable of producing motion.
"1857 Philip Henry Gosse: On the Presence of Motile Organs , and the Power of Locomotion, in Foraminifera ... . These [Foraminifera] were always found, a few hours after the weed had been deposited in my vases, adhering to the glass, with the pseudopodia extended ... constantly roaming ; they crawled up and down the stems and branches of the Algae, and over the various objects in the tank, never remaining long in. one station ... it is by means of the adhesion and contraction of the pseudopodia, that the animal drags itself along...."
- 3 In organs: having the power to move their contents, or to change their shape or tension by writhing or contracting as required by their particular physiological functions.
"2007 H E König et al: Veterinary Anatomy of Domestic Mammals Visceral motility' is responsible for transporting the contents of the different organs. Thus it controls the amount of contents found in any organ at any one time. Through contraction and dilatation mechanisms, the food bolus passes through the intestinal tract, the gall bladder secretes bile, urine is excreted, semen is transported and the uterus wall contracts during birth. This motility is also responsible for the closing of sphincters, for example at the stomach exit (pylorus) or in the bladder. The diastole and systole of the heart can be understood as the motility of the circulatory system."
- 4 Of or relating to those mental images that arise from the sensations of bodily movement and position.
Adjective
- 1 (of spores or microorganisms) capable of movement wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"The gametes produced by the male are motile."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "motile"?
Common synonyms include: active, animal like protists, driving, flagellated, impelling, in motion.
How do you use "motile" in a sentence?
The gametes produced by the male are motile.
How do you pronounce "motile"?
Pronounced /ˈməʊtaɪl/.
Etymology
From Latin mōtus, perfect passive participle of moveō (“I move”) (English move).