A nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) imaging and display method for the observation of the continuous motion of objects is presented. By modifying a line scan technique, the spin-density distribution along a line is displayed in succession. Although spatial information is limited to only one dimension, the motion of the object is recorded at intervals of 55 ms by using a commercially available NMR imaging system. In a phantom study, this method yielded accurate velocity measurements along a single axis. When the method was applied to the human chest, an image analogous to that of M-mode echocardiography was obtained. This method, which can be called spin-echo M-mode NMR imaging, approaches the functional analysis of cardiac wall motion in regions where echocardiography is not possible. The effects of respiratory motion on the left ventricular wall were recorded in addition to its intrinsic contractile motion in an image obtained along a line parallel to the cranio-caudal axis of the body. The advantages of this method to assess cardiac wall motion in a patient with an arrhythmia were also demonstrated.