Talk:motive

"Noun

2. Alternative spelling of motif; a theme or subject, especially ...[etc]"

This is incorrect and untrue. "Motive" is a synonym of, NOT an "alternative spelling" of, "Motif". The two words are in all cases pronounced differently. "Motif" is pronounced in English as "mo-TEEF", with an "f" sound. Even when used as a synonym for "motif", "motive" is usually pronounced as "MO-tiv" but also less frequently as "mo-TEEV", with a "v" sound - never with an "f" sound.

See American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language: motive, and Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary, 11th Edition: motive.
Milkunderwood 15:24, 26 September 2010 (UTC)

I have made changes - see History of main Entry for details. Milkunderwood 17:39, 26 September 2010 (UTC)

You were right that "alternative spelling" was not the correct term in view of the different pronunciations, but neither is "synonym". Etymological doublets with overlapping senses we call "alternative forms". At any rate, there shouldn't be competing definitions at various entries, but one main definition and otherwise links using the templates "alternative spelling of", "alternative form of", "synonym of". 84.63.31.91 10:56, 24 July 2024 (UTC)