In this paper, we have proposed a framework for representation and recogniti on of motion events of s patial objects abstracted as directed points . The framework combines qualitati ve s patial reasoning wi th formal grammars in order to recognize motion events in an input stream. Motion events are represented by three qualitati ve attri butes, namely, orientati on, directi on and distance. It has been shown that by using spatio-tempor al continuity of qualitati ve relati ons, it is possible to use regular grammars for event recogniti on. The novelty of the approach is that any number of qualitati ve relation sets can be combined with formal grammars and hierarchies of abstractions can be created to make the knowledge representation cl oser to human cognition.