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motive vs motif

motive

Definitions

noun

  1. a theme that is repeated or elaborated in a piece of music
  2. a design or figure that consists of recurring shapes or colors, as in architecture or decoration
  3. 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

adjective

  1. causing or able to cause motion
  2. impelling to action

Examples

It will be given a tender from another departed locomotive and regain its former Sierra appearance.

It is not just a projection of human motives on to a neutral universe.

We must remember that the prime motive for Housmann's boulevards and circuses was to ensure that a strategically placed cannon could fire down many streets, quelling the citizens who were periodically disposed to revolution.

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motif

Definitions

noun

  1. a theme that is repeated or elaborated in a piece of music
  2. a design or figure that consists of recurring shapes or colors, as in architecture or decoration
  3. a unifying idea that is a recurrent element in literary or artistic work

Examples

In far northern Europe, bicephalous animal motifs seem to be traceable at least as far back as the early 7th millennium B.C.

Certain batik designs, like the parangrusak motif, are still considered sacred as they were specially designed for sultans, their consorts and crown princes.

Pop music has no purer form of insufferableness than the I-love-my-child motif.

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