instantiate
verb
in·stan·ti·ate
in-ˈstan(t)-shē-ˌāt 
instantiated; instantiating
: to represent (an abstraction) by a concrete instance
Heroes instantiate ideals.—
W. J. Bennett
W. J. BennettExamples of instantiate in a Sentence
his imposing mansion is intended to instantiate for visitors his staggering success as an entrepreneur
Recent Examples on the Web
Other works by Paglen physically instantiate his arguments beyond what writing alone can do.
—Louis Bury, ARTnews.com, 1 May 2026
Here, the sado-sensual yearning of the Confederacy to instantiate itself through the fetishes and reliquaries of figurative sculpture is shown as hollow, impotent, all too discomfiting, and very real.
—Horace D. Ballard, Artforum, 22 Apr. 2026
Are the humanities as they are currently instantiated in the American university system actually worth the Faustian bargains we are forced to make to keep them?
—Tyler Austin Harper, The Atlantic, 12 Feb. 2026
In a sense, starting internally and drawing inspiration from the external world around her, her mother instantiated an understanding of beauty that captured the core of an individual.
—Essence, 17 Dec. 2025
In other words, our intelligence is designed as an uncertainty-minimization function, and this is instantiated as a set of mental states (gears) controlled by the blue dot, LC network.
—Marcus Weldon, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Nov. 2025
He feels burned by his efforts to instantiate popular sovereignty.
—Shikha Dalmia, Washington Post, 13 Oct. 2025
Harwicz’s novels are more hallucinatory than supernatural—but a more provocative distinction between her books and others in this semi-subgenre is that, for her characters, motherhood does not cause animal rage and instability so much as instantiate them.
—Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2025
Provision and register agent identities when instantiated and decommission them immediately after use.
—Eric Olden, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Louis Bury, ARTnews.com, 1 May 2026
Here, the sado-sensual yearning of the Confederacy to instantiate itself through the fetishes and reliquaries of figurative sculpture is shown as hollow, impotent, all too discomfiting, and very real.
—Horace D. Ballard, Artforum, 22 Apr. 2026
Are the humanities as they are currently instantiated in the American university system actually worth the Faustian bargains we are forced to make to keep them?
—Tyler Austin Harper, The Atlantic, 12 Feb. 2026
In a sense, starting internally and drawing inspiration from the external world around her, her mother instantiated an understanding of beauty that captured the core of an individual.
—Essence, 17 Dec. 2025
In other words, our intelligence is designed as an uncertainty-minimization function, and this is instantiated as a set of mental states (gears) controlled by the blue dot, LC network.
—Marcus Weldon, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Nov. 2025
He feels burned by his efforts to instantiate popular sovereignty.
—Shikha Dalmia, Washington Post, 13 Oct. 2025
Harwicz’s novels are more hallucinatory than supernatural—but a more provocative distinction between her books and others in this semi-subgenre is that, for her characters, motherhood does not cause animal rage and instability so much as instantiate them.
—Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2025
Provision and register agent identities when instantiated and decommission them immediately after use.
—Eric Olden, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Instantiate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/instantiate. Accessed 4 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
