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adj. 1. Changing or capable of changing position: a moving target. 2. Relating to or involved in a transfer of furnishings from one location to another: moving expenses; moving van. 3. Causing or producing motion. 4. Involving a motor vehicle in motion: a moving violation. 5. Arousing or capable of arousing deep emotion: a moving account of the tragedy. moving·ly adv. Synonyms: moving, stirring, poignant, touching, affecting These adjectives mean arousing or capable of arousing deep, usually somber emotion. Moving is the least specific: "A ... widow ... has laid her case of destitution before him, in a very moving letter" (Nathaniel Hawthorne). Something stirring excites strong, turbulent, but not unpleasant feelings: a stirring speech about patriotism. Poignant suggests the evocation of keen, painful emotion: "The happier our new relations seemed, the stronger I felt an undercurrent of poignant sadness" (Vladimir Nabokov). Touching emphasizes sympathy or tenderness: a touching eulogy. Affecting applies especially to what is heart-rending or bittersweet: We found the photo of the hostages' release to be deeply affecting. |
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