as in rather
as a substitute
I was offered a ride, but I chose to walk instead
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of instead
And our Test Kitchen chose a puff pastry topping instead.
—
Nellah Bailey McGough, Southern Living, 13 Oct. 2025
Los Angeles Dodgers star Blake Snell is not buying into the Milwaukee Brewers' underdog motto, treating them instead as the team that was the best in the National League all season long.
—Nelson Espinal, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
The Maine Wire reported that the woman was expecting a delivery of rice, paper plates, and a toy lightsaber, but instead discovered the ballots inside her Amazon package.
—Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 7 Oct. 2025
Trump sends California guards to Oregon A federal judge this weekend ruled that the president could not deploy 200 Oregon National Guard troops in Portland so the president ordered hundreds of California National Guard troops to deploy there instead.
—Diane Brady, Fortune, 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for instead
Nellah Bailey McGough, Southern Living, 13 Oct. 2025
Los Angeles Dodgers star Blake Snell is not buying into the Milwaukee Brewers' underdog motto, treating them instead as the team that was the best in the National League all season long.
—Nelson Espinal, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
The Maine Wire reported that the woman was expecting a delivery of rice, paper plates, and a toy lightsaber, but instead discovered the ballots inside her Amazon package.
—Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 7 Oct. 2025
Trump sends California guards to Oregon A federal judge this weekend ruled that the president could not deploy 200 Oregon National Guard troops in Portland so the president ordered hundreds of California National Guard troops to deploy there instead.
—Diane Brady, Fortune, 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for instead
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instead
rather
Adverb
-
And while handing Ole Miss its first loss of the year was reason to celebrate, things got pretty somber rather quickly for the Bulldogs after learning the injury status of one of their top playmakers.—
Michael Gallagher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Oct. 2025
-
Mann said Heat 2 would not deal with the events of 1995 in the original movie but would start rather one day after, with only Hanna’s associate Chris Shiherlis, played by Val Kilmer still alive.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
18 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Instead.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instead. Accessed 19 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share