Word.ws English Dictionary

the spirit moves someone

the spirit moves someone phrase: one desires or decides on something.

Phrase

the spirit moves someone

  1. One desires or decides on something.
    • 'I may possibly say a few words,' said Psmith carelessly, 'if the spirit moves me. Who am I that I should deny people a simple pleasure?'1910, P. G. Wodehouse, Psmith in the City
    • Let me say that we are open at this point for questions and let's have an interchange as the spirit moves you with respect to bringing out whatever points you are interested in.1963, United States. Congress. House. Committee on Foreign Affairs, Winning the Cold War: The U.S. Ideological Offensive, page 218

Origin of the spirit moves someone

Reflecting the senses of spirit as enthusiasm, as energy or will ( ≈ notion), or as mood (compare in the mood); sometimes also taken to be a reference to the Holy Spirit.

Questions about the spirit moves someone

What does the spirit moves someone mean?
The spirit moves someone means one desires or decides on something.
What part of speech is the spirit moves someone?
The spirit moves someone is a phrase.

Words near the spirit moves someone in the dictionary

  1. the snot out of
  2. the spirit is strong but the flesh is weak
  3. the spirit is strong, but the flesh is weak
  4. the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak
  5. the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak
  6. the spirit moves someone
  7. the spoils belong to the victor
  8. the squeaky wheel gets the grease
  9. the squeaky wheel gets the oil
  10. the squirts
  11. the sticks

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: the spirit moves someone (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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