Motive - Definition

adj 1: causing or able to cause motion; "a motive force";
"motive power"; "motor energy" [syn: motive(a),
motor]
2: impelling to action; "it may well be that ethical language
has primarily a motivative function"- Arthur Pap; "motive
pleas"; "motivating arguments" [syn: motivative(a),
motive(a), motivating]
n 1: the psychological feature that arouses an organism to
action toward a desired goal; the reason for the action;
that which gives purpose and direction to behavior; "we did
not understand his motivation"; "he acted with the best of
motives" [syn: motivation, motive, need]
2: a theme that is repeated or elaborated in a piece of music
[syn: motif, motive]
3: a design or figure that consists of recurring shapes or
colors, as in architecture or decoration [syn: motif,
motive]