In the early stages Dunfermline pushed forward and Georgi Hristov had a shot well saved by Gordon Marshall at his near post. At the other end the visitors replied with a Kevin McBride effort that slipped wide of the post.
Dunfermline forced the first corner on 27 minutes, but despite a fumble by Marshall, there was no danger. Motherwell forced their first corner three minutes later and thought they had taken the lead, but Scott McDonald's header was rightly ruled out for offside.
The home side started the second half the better side with substitute Ian Campbell causing problems down the left.
Although on 58 minutes it looked as though Motherwell had taken the lead, but McDonald's long-range effort only managed to hit the post holding the net behind the goal.
The only real save of the match came on the hour mark when Hristov hit a stinging drive that Marshall was forced to beat over the crossbar.
The closest Motherwell came at this stage was when McDonald charged down a Derek Stillie clearance only to see the ball run wide.
As the game went into its closing stages, both teams pushed for the elusive goal that would win the match and the visitors' Jamie Paterson saw his shot deflected for a corner.
At the other end the home side forced four corners in the final minute without troubling the visitors' goal with any of them.
They also managed to squander a late free-kick when Lee Makel fired a shot over the wall, but tamely into the arms of Marshall.
The game ended in a fair 0-0 draw, with neither side having the required quality in the final third to break the deadlock.