motives

NOUN

reason, purpose

Synonyms

STRONGEST

aim cause consideration emotion feeling idea impulse influence intent intention motivation passion rationale

STRONG

antecedent basis design determinant drive end grounds incentive incitement inducement inspiration mainspring object occasion root spring spur stimulus thinking

Antonyms

STRONGEST

neglect thoughtlessness

STRONG

discouragement hindrance

WEAK

deterrent

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Motives aside, there are a lot of us.

From The Verge • Apr. 19, 2022

Motives may not be fully rational, and reasons may not be completely knowable, but even extreme or capricious varieties of human behavior have observable patterns and causes.

From New York Times • Aug. 23, 2021

Last year's single Motives was bolder still - a sassy and stormy takedown of the "clout chasers" who've used her to gain some notoriety of their own.

From BBC • Jun. 26, 2020

After Mitchell said no, Ruiz played a video of Mitchell doing a podcast to publicize his book, “Enhanced Interrogation: Inside the Minds and Motives of the Islamic Terrorists Trying To Destroy America,” in 2018.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 24, 2020

Motives which were already present to some small extent in the great wars of the early twentieth century have now become dominant and are consciously recognized and acted upon.

From "1984" by George Orwell