A debate motion is the exact sentence a round is fought over — the proposition the proposition side must defend and the opposition must defeat. It is not a topic. "Social media" is a topic; "This House would ban under-16s from social media" is a motion. The difference matters more than almost anything else in competitive debate, because a motion assigns burdens, fixes the scope, and quietly decides what counts as winning before the first speaker stands up.
This guide does two things. First, it teaches you how to read a motion correctly — the skill that wins more rounds than any clever argument, because most lost rounds are lost by misreading what the motion actually required. Second, it gives you 90 balanced, tested motions sorted by difficulty and type, ready to run in practice or competition.
What a Debate Motion Actually Is
In British Parliamentary, World Schools, and most parliamentary formats, motions are written as a single sentence beginning with "This House." That phrase is a convention inherited from the Westminster parliament, where members address "the House." It does not mean a literal building — "This House" stands in for the body making the decision: a government, a society, an institution, or sometimes an individual acting reasonably. Reading "This House" as "we, the people deciding this question" is the correct frame.
The verb after "This House" sets the motion type, and that is where most of the interpretive work lives.
The Four Motion Types — And Why the Verb Decides Your Burden
This House Would (THW) — policy motions. These propose an action. "This House would legalize all drugs." The proposition's burden is to show the action is, on balance, better than the status quo or the most reasonable alternative. THW motions are the most common and the most beginner-friendly, because the clash is concrete: do this, or do not.
This House Believes That (THBT) — value or analysis motions. These assert a claim about how the world is or should be valued. "This House believes that the internet has done more harm than good." There is no policy to enact; the burden is to defend the truth of the belief. THBT motions reward analysis over mechanism. You are not building a plan; you are proving a proposition.
This House Supports / Regrets / Prefers — stance motions. "This House regrets the rise of cancel culture." "This House, as the environmental movement, would prioritize nuclear power over renewables." These ask you to adopt a stance or a comparison. "Regrets" motions are retrospective — you argue a past development was, net, bad — and they do not require you to propose undoing it, only to evaluate it.
This House, as X, would... — actor motions. These put you in the shoes of a specific actor: "This House, as the United States, would withdraw from NATO." Your arguments must come from that actor's interests and constraints, not from a neutral god's-eye view. Misreading the actor is the fastest way to lose an actor motion.
The single most common rookie error is debating a THBT motion as though it were a THW motion — building an elaborate policy mechanism when the motion only asked you to defend a belief. Read the verb first. It tells you what you have to prove. For the deeper skill of controlling what the round is about, see framing in debate.
How to Read a Motion in 90 Seconds
When you receive a motion, run this checklist before you brainstorm a single argument:
Doing this consistently is the difference between a debater who answers the motion and one who answers a motion they wish they had been given. The reading skill generalizes; the related case-building method is in how to write a debate case.
What Makes a Motion Balanced
A good motion is balanced: a competent team can win either side. An unbalanced motion ("This House believes genocide is wrong") produces a non-debate, because one side has no defensible ground. When you write your own motions for practice, test balance by genuinely trying to build the opposition case. If you cannot find three real arguments against, the motion is broken.
Balance is not the same as difficulty. "This House would abolish prisons" is balanced and hard. "This House would have school start an hour later" is balanced and easy. Both are usable; they just train different things. The 90 motions below are sorted so you can pick by the level you need. For the principles behind what separates a workable topic from a dud, see good debate topics.
30 Beginner Motions (Concrete, Accessible Clash)
These have clear stakes and require no specialist knowledge. Ideal for novices and classroom rounds.
30 Intermediate Motions (Requires a Framework)
These reward debaters who can build a value framework and weigh competing principles. Good for school teams with a season under their belt.
30 Advanced Motions (Specialist Knowledge and Nuance)
These reward debaters with strong background knowledge and the ability to handle genuine moral or strategic complexity. Suited to competitive circuit teams.
How to Practice With These Motions
A motion list is only useful if you run rounds with it. Pull a motion at random, give yourself 15 minutes of prep (the standard in many formats), and build a case for the side you find harder — that is where the learning is. If you have a partner, swap sides after each round so neither of you only ever argues the position you already agree with. The full preparation routine is in how to prepare for a debate.
If you do not have a sparring partner, you can still run unlimited rounds against an AI opponent that takes whichever side you do not, which is the fastest way to test whether your reading of the motion holds up under pressure — try any motion above on the ladder. The format-specific rules that govern how these motions are run are in parliamentary debate and World Schools debate format.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a debate motion and a debate topic? A topic is a subject area ("immigration"). A motion is a single, precise, debatable sentence drawn from that subject ("This House would open all borders"). You debate motions, not topics. Browsing debate topics helps you find subject areas; converting one into a sharp motion is the next step.
What does "This House" mean in a debate motion? It is a parliamentary convention meaning the body deciding the question — a government, society, or reasonable decision-maker — not a literal house. Read it as "we who are deciding this."
How do I know which side of a motion I am on? In formal competition, sides are assigned, usually by coin toss or draw, and you must be able to argue either. The proposition (or government) defends the motion; the opposition defeats it. Being able to argue the side you disagree with is the core skill — see how to be a good debater.
Are "This House would" and "This House believes that" interchangeable? No, and treating them as interchangeable is a classic error. "Would" demands you defend an action and its consequences; "believes that" demands you defend the truth of a claim. The verb sets your burden of proof — covered in burden of proof in debate.
How long should a debater spend interpreting a motion before arguing? About a quarter of your prep time. Misreading the motion wastes the other three quarters. Run the five-step reading checklist above first, every time.
Ready to put these skills to the test? Practice debating against AI on Debate Ladder.