What does "motion" mean?
A state of progression from one place to another.
Motion
/ˈməʊ.ʃən/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A state of progression from one place to another.
- Grammar: motion is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: move, movement, act, action.
- Useful contrasts: desertlike silence, dramatic stillness, motionless state.
- Usage evidence: And I call on the chairman of the Education Committee to support the motion.
How to use "motion"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "motion" 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 "motion" 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 "motion" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "motion" 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 "motion" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang 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 "move" 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 "motion", 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 state of progression from one place to another. uncountable
"Several parties of hop-pickers joined the train at the intermediate stations, and the guard performed the acrobatic feat of walking along the footboards of the coaches to examine tickets, while the train was in motion."
- 2 the act of changing location from one place to another wordnet
- 3 A change of position with respect to time. countable
"This is the great wheel to which the clock owes its motion."
- 4 a change of position that does not entail a change of location wordnet
- 5 A change from one place to another. countable, uncountable
"Secondly, When a body is once in motion it will continue to move forever, unless something stops it. When a ball is struck on the surface of the earth, the friction of the earth and the resistance of the air soon stop its motion."
Show 15 more definitions
- 6 the use of movements (especially of the hands) to communicate familiar or prearranged signals wordnet
- 7 A parliamentary action to propose something. A similar procedure in any official or business meeting. countable
"The motion to amend is now open for discussion."
- 8 a formal proposal for action made to a deliberative assembly for discussion and vote wordnet
- 9 An entertainment or show, especially a puppet show. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"when God gave him reason, he gave him freedom to choose, for reason is but choosing; he had bin else a meer artificiall Adam, such an Adam as he is in the motions."
- 10 a natural event that involves a change in the position or location of something wordnet
- 11 from κίνησις (kinesis); any change. Traditionally of four types: generation and corruption, alteration, augmentation and diminution, and change of place. countable, uncountable
"I say, it is no uneven jot, to pass from the more faint and obscure examples of Spermatical life to the more considerable effects of general Motion in Minerals, Metalls, and sundry Meteors, whose easie and rude shapes may have no need of any Principle of Life, or Spermatical form distinct from the Rest or Motion of the particles of the Matter."
- 12 an optical illusion of motion produced by viewing a rapid succession of still pictures of a moving object wordnet
- 13 Movement of the mind, desires, or passions; mental act, or impulse to any action; internal activity. countable, uncountable
"Let a good man obey every good motion rising in his heart, knowing that every such motion proceeds from God."
- 14 a state of change wordnet
- 15 A formal request, oral or written, made to a judge or court of law to obtain an official court ruling or order for a legal action to be taken by, or on behalf of, the movant. countable, uncountable
- 16 A movement of the bowels; the product of such movement. countable, euphemistic, uncountable
"From that time to the present (three weeks) she has taken one pill every night, and had one comfortable motion every morning without the aid of any other aperient, and her health has much improved."
- 17 Change of pitch in successive sounds, whether in the same part or in groups of parts. (Conjunct motion is that by single degrees of the scale. Contrary motion is when parts move in opposite directions. Disjunct motion is motion by skips. Oblique motion is when one part is stationary while another moves. Similar or direct motion is when parts move in the same direction.) countable, uncountable
"The independent motions of different parts sounding together constitute counterpoint."
- 18 A puppet, or puppet show. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"What motion's this? the model of Nineveh?"
- 19 A piece of moving mechanism, such as on a steam locomotive. countable, uncountable
"[...] three 2-4-2 tank engines were secured from the Hunslet Engine Co. of Leeds. As the line began on the Quay in Bideford, the locomotives had their motion encased, as shown in the illustrations on page 414."
- 20 Success; achievements, especially those that others cannot match. slang, uncountable
"You've never got no motion, lad / You've never got no action"
Verb
- 1 To gesture indicating a desired movement.
"He motioned for me to come closer."
- 2 show, express or direct through movement wordnet
- 3 To introduce a motion in parliamentary procedure. proscribed
- 4 To make a proposal; to offer plans.
"Here's Gloucester, a foe to citizens, One that still motions war and never peace"
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Antonyms
desertlike silencedramatic stillnessmotionless statetemporary immobilities
Example
"And I call on the chairman of the Education Committee to support the motion."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "motion"?
Common synonyms include: move, movement, act, action, activeness, activism.
How do you use "motion" in a sentence?
And I call on the chairman of the Education Committee to support the motion.
How do you pronounce "motion"?
Pronounced /ˈməʊ.ʃən/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Inherited from Middle English mocioun, mocion, from Anglo-Norman motion, Middle French motion, and their etymon Latin mōtiō (“movement, motion”), related to movēre, from Proto-Indo-European *m(y)ewh₁- (“to move”).
Etymology 2
Possibly a variant of Mowson.
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