motion
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A change of position that does not entail a change of location.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
mohshuhnSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈmoʊʃən
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A change of position that does not entail a change of location
“The reflex motion of his eyebrows revealed his surprise.”
A natural event that involves a change in the position or location of something
countable
A change of position with respect to time.
philosophy
From κίνησις (kinesis); any change. Traditionally of four types: generation and corruption, alteration, augmentation and diminution, and change of place.
countable
A parliamentary action to propose something. A similar procedure in any official or business meeting.
uncountable
A state of progression from one place to another.
verb
To gesture indicating a desired movement.
To make a proposal; to offer plans.
proscribed
To introduce a motion in parliamentary procedure.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A2 · Elementary
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A change of position that does not entail a change of location
Used this way, motion is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“The reflex motion of his eyebrows revealed his surprise.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Usage note
It most often appears in the pattern “motion of …”, which is worth copying when you use it.
Natural pattern: motion of …
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use motion
- “The reflex motion of his eyebrows revealed his surprise.”noun
- “They were in a state of steady motion.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A camera that takes a sequence of photographs that can give the illusion of motion when viewed in rapid succession.
Someone who goes to see movies.
Photographic film several hundred feet long and wound on a spool.
The act of making a film.
A form of entertainment that enacts a story by sound and a sequence of images giving the illusion of continuous movement.
An analysis of a specific job in an effort to find the most efficient method in terms of time and effort.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.