| / English Dictionary |
MOVEMENT
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
The act of changing location from one place to another
Example:
his move put him directly in my path
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("movement" is a kind of...):
change (the action of changing something)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "movement"):
approach; approaching; coming (the act of drawing spatially closer to something)
advance; advancement; forward motion; onward motion; procession; progress; progression (the act of moving forward (as toward a goal))
locomotion; travel (self-propelled movement)
lunge; lurch (the act of moving forward suddenly)
travel; traveling; travelling (the act of going from one place to another)
chase; following; pursual; pursuit (the act of pursuing in an effort to overtake or capture)
ascending; ascension; ascent; rise (the act of changing location in an upward direction)
descent (the act of changing your location in a downward direction)
swing; swinging; vacillation (changing location by moving back and forth)
return (the act of going back to a prior location)
coast; glide; slide (the act of moving smoothly along a surface while remaining in contact with it)
slippage (failing to hold or slipping out of place)
flow; stream (the act of flowing or streaming; continuous progression)
crawl (a very slow movement)
hurrying; speed; speeding (changing location rapidly)
displacement; translation (the act of uniform movement)
shift; shifting (the act of moving from one place to another)
haste; hurry; rush; rushing (the act of moving hurriedly and in a careless manner)
maneuver; manoeuvre; play (a deliberate coordinated movement requiring dexterity and skill)
migration (the movement of persons from one country or locality to another)
Derivation:
move (change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically)
move (cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense)
move (change residence, affiliation, or place of employment)
Sense 2
Meaning:
The act of changing the location of something
Example:
the movement of cargo onto the vessel
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("movement" is a kind of...):
change (the action of changing something)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "movement"):
deracination; displacement (to move something from its natural environment)
conveyance; transfer; transferral; transport; transportation (the act of moving something from one location to another)
insertion; introduction; intromission (the act of putting one thing into another)
letting down; lowering (the act of causing something to move to a lower level)
transplant; transplantation; transplanting (the act of removing something from one location and introducing it in another location)
troop movement (movement of military units to a new location)
Derivation:
move (cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense)
Sense 3
Meaning:
A change of position that does not entail a change of location
Example:
gastrointestinal motility
Synonyms:
motility; motion; move; movement
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("movement" is a kind of...):
change (the action of changing something)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "movement"):
abduction ((physiology) moving of a body part away from the central axis of the body)
adduction ((physiology) moving of a body part toward the central axis of the body)
agitation (the act of agitating something; causing it to move around (usually vigorously))
body English (a motion of the body by a player as if to make an object already propelled go in the desired direction)
circumduction (a circular movement of a limb or eye)
disturbance (the act of disturbing something or someone; setting something in motion)
fetal movement; foetal movement (motion of a fetus within the uterus (usually detected by the 16th week of pregnancy))
dart; flit (a sudden quick movement)
gesture (motion of hands or body to emphasize or help to express a thought or feeling)
headshake; headshaking (the act of turning your head left and right to signify denial or disbelief or bemusement)
inclination; inclining (the act of inclining; bending forward)
eversion; everting; inversion (the act of turning inside out)
inversion; upending (turning upside down; setting on end)
jerk; jerking; jolt; saccade (an abrupt spasmodic movement)
kick; kicking (a rhythmic thrusting movement of the legs as in swimming or calisthenics)
kneel; kneeling (supporting yourself on your knees)
lurch; pitch; pitching (abrupt up-and-down motion (as caused by a ship or other conveyance))
eye movement (the movement of the eyes)
opening (the act of opening something)
prostration (the act of assuming a prostrate position)
reach; reaching; stretch (the act of physically reaching or thrusting out)
reciprocation (alternating back-and-forth movement)
reclining (the act of assuming or maintaining a reclining position)
retraction (the act of pulling or holding or drawing a part back)
retroflection; retroflexion (the act of bending backward)
rotary motion; rotation (the act of rotating as if on an axis)
closing; shutting (the act of closing something)
sitting (the act of assuming or maintaining a seated position)
posing; sitting ((photography) the act of assuming a certain position (as for a photograph or portrait))
snap (the act of snapping the fingers; movement of a finger from the tip to the base of the thumb on the same hand)
squat; squatting (the act of assuming or maintaining a crouching position with the knees bent and the buttocks near the heels)
sweep (a movement in an arc)
toss (an abrupt movement)
quiver; quivering; vibration (the act of vibrating)
wave (a movement like that of a sudden occurrence or increase in a specified phenomenon)
flicker; flutter; waver (the act of moving back and forth)
standing (the act of assuming or maintaining an erect upright position)
span; straddle (the act of sitting or standing astride)
stroke (a single complete movement)
squirm; wiggle; wriggle (the act of wiggling)
eurhythmics; eurhythmy; eurythmics; eurythmy (the interpretation in harmonious bodily movements of the rhythm of musical compositions; used to teach musical understanding)
Derivation:
move (move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion)
Sense 4
Meaning:
A series of actions advancing a principle or tending toward a particular end
Example:
contributed to the war effort
Synonyms:
campaign; cause; crusade; drive; effort; movement
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("movement" is a kind of...):
venture (any venturesome undertaking especially one with an uncertain outcome)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "movement"):
ad blitz; ad campaign; advertising campaign (an organized program of advertisements)
anti-war movement (a campaign against entering or continuing a war)
charm campaign (a campaign of flattery and friendliness (by a company, politician, etc.) to become more popular and gain support)
consumerism (a movement advocating greater protection of the interests of consumers)
campaigning; candidacy; candidature; electioneering; political campaign (the campaign of a candidate to be elected)
fund-raising campaign; fund-raising drive; fund-raising effort (a campaign to raise money for some cause)
feminism; feminist movement; women's lib; women's liberation movement (the movement aimed at equal rights for women)
gay lib; gay liberation movement (the movement aimed at liberating homosexuals from legal or social or economic oppression)
lost cause (a defeated cause or a cause for which defeat is inevitable)
reform (a campaign aimed to correct abuses or malpractices)
war (a concerted campaign to end something that is injurious)
youth crusade; youth movement (political or religious or social reform movement or agitation consisting chiefly of young people)
Sense 5
Meaning:
The driving and regulating parts of a mechanism (as of a watch or clock)
Example:
it was an expensive watch with a diamond movement
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Hypernyms ("movement" is a kind of...):
action; action mechanism (the operating part that transmits power to a mechanism)
Holonyms ("movement" is a part of...):
clock (a timepiece that shows the time of day)
ticker; watch (a small portable timepiece)
Sense 6
Meaning:
A general tendency to change (as of opinion)
Example:
a broad movement of the electorate to the right
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents
Hypernyms ("movement" is a kind of...):
disposition; inclination; tendency (an attitude of mind especially one that favors one alternative over others)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "movement"):
evolutionary trend (a general direction of evolutionary change)
gravitation (a figurative movement toward some attraction)
Sense 7
Meaning:
A major self-contained part of a symphony or sonata
Example:
the second movement is slow and melodic
Classified under:
Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents
Hypernyms ("movement" is a kind of...):
composition; musical composition; opus; piece; piece of music (a musical work that has been created)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "movement"):
intermezzo (a short movement coming between the major sections of a symphony)
scherzo (a fast movement (usually in triple time))
Holonyms ("movement" is a part of...):
sonata (a musical composition of 3 or 4 movements of contrasting forms)
Sense 8
Meaning:
A natural event that involves a change in the position or location of something
Synonyms:
motion; movement
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("movement" is a kind of...):
happening; natural event; occurrence; occurrent (an event that happens)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "movement"):
crustal movement; tectonic movement (movement resulting from or causing deformation of the earth's crust)
approach; approaching (the event of one object coming closer to another)
passage; passing (the motion of one object relative to another)
deflection; deflexion (the movement of the pointer or pen of a measuring instrument from its zero position)
bend; bending (movement that causes the formation of a curve)
change of location; travel (a movement through space that changes the location of something)
undulation; wave ((physics) a movement up and down or back and forth)
jitter (a small irregular movement)
periodic motion; periodic movement (motion that recurs over and over and the period of time required for each recurrence remains the same)
heave ((geology) a horizontal dislocation)
backlash; rebound; recoil; repercussion (a movement back from an impact)
kick; recoil (the backward jerk of a gun when it is fired)
seek (the movement of a read/write head to a specific data track on a disk)
squeeze; wring (a twisting squeeze)
cam stroke; stroke; throw (the maximum movement available to a pivoted or reciprocating piece by a cam)
turn; turning (a movement in a new direction)
twist; wrench (a jerky pulling movement)
undulation (wavelike motion; a gentle rising and falling in the manner of waves)
moving ridge; wave (one of a series of ridges that moves across the surface of a liquid (especially across a large body of water))
wobble (an unsteady rocking motion)
commotion; whirl (confused movement)
Brownian motion; Brownian movement; pedesis (the random motion of small particles suspended in a gas or liquid)
Derivation:
move (change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically)
Sense 9
Meaning:
A group of people with a common ideology who try together to achieve certain general goals
Example:
he led the national liberation front
Synonyms:
front; movement; social movement
Classified under:
Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects
Hypernyms ("movement" is a kind of...):
social group (people sharing some social relation)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "movement"):
Fighting French; Free French (a French movement during World War II that was organized in London by Charles de Gaulle to fight for the liberation of France from German control and for the restoration of the republic)
art movement; artistic movement (a group of artists who agree on general principles)
Boy Scouts (an international (but decentralized) movement started in 1908 in England with the goal of teaching good citizenship to boys)
Civil Rights movement (movement in the United States beginning in the 1960s and led primarily by Blacks in an effort to establish the civil rights of individual Black citizens)
common front (a movement in which several individuals or groups with different interests join together)
cultural movement (a group of people working together to advance certain cultural goals)
ecumenism; oecumenism (a movement promoting union between religions (especially between Christian churches))
falun gong (a spiritual movement that began in China in the latter half of the 20th century and is based on Buddhist and Taoist teachings and practices)
political movement (a group of people working together to achieve a political goal)
reform movement (a movement intended to bring about social and humanitarian reforms)
religious movement (a movement intended to bring about religious reforms)
Zionism; Zionist movement (a movement of world Jewry that arose late in the 19th century with the aim of creating a Jewish state in Palestine)
Sense 10
Meaning:
An optical illusion of motion produced by viewing a rapid succession of still pictures of a moving object
Example:
the succession of flashing lights gave an illusion of movement
Synonyms:
apparent motion; apparent movement; motion; movement
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural phenomena
Hypernyms ("movement" is a kind of...):
optical illusion (an optical phenomenon that results in a false or deceptive visual impression)
Sense 11
Meaning:
A euphemism for defecation
Example:
he had a bowel movement
Synonyms:
bm; bowel movement; movement
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural processes
Hypernyms ("movement" is a kind of...):
defecation; laxation; shitting (the elimination of fecal waste through the anus)
Domain usage:
euphemism (an inoffensive or indirect expression that is substituted for one that is considered offensive or too harsh)
Context examples:
It was the last conscious movement he was to make upon earth.
(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
The fair girl advanced and bent over me till I could feel the movement of her breath upon me.
(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)
In medicine, having to do with the movement of body parts.
(Motor, NCI Dictionary)
Do not include tremor (repetitive, regular, rhythmic movements).
(AIMS - Upper Extremities, NCI Thesaurus)
He made a movement to rise, but I do not believe he had enough force left in his body.
(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)
Epithelial movement therefore requires integration of motogenic and cell-survival signals.
(Mucosal Healing Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)
Eventually, in the year 1869, the movement rather suddenly collapsed, although there have been sporadic outbreaks of the same sort since that date.
(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale (AIMS) Global Judgments, Patient's awareness of abnormal movements.
(AIMS - Patient's Awareness of Abnormal Movements, NCI Thesaurus)
Mr. Murdstone makes a movement of impatience which I have been expecting for a long time.
(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)
Your brain senses movement by getting signals from your inner ears, eyes, muscles and joints.
(Motion Sickness, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
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