as in planting
to set permanently in the consciousness or mind-set
a charismatic leader who instilled in his followers a passionate commitment to the cause
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Recent Examples of instilling
Just keep instilling confidence in me.
—
CBS News, 22 Apr. 2026
The college aims to give its students an education that is not just about their work but about their lives—instilling in them a sense of purpose, restoring their feeling of competence, teaching them virtue.
—Emma Green, New Yorker, 17 Apr. 2026
Pinney credits her parents and grandparents for instilling the values of being neighborly and contributing through community volunteering.
—News Release, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Apr. 2026
Carson noted the importance of instilling the belief of American exceptionalism in children.
—Ashley J. Dimella, FOXNews.com, 29 Mar. 2026
The agents and officers aren’t trained in airport security, and critics say the armed officers are instilling fear in American travelers.
—Elizabeth Robinson, NBC news, 24 Mar. 2026
Watching players grow, instilling confidence, laughing and, of course, winning with them, is still important for Auriemmma, who with Dailey by his side is in the stretch run of his 41st season and about to turn 72.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 15 Mar. 2026
That focusing on strengths, such as literature, humor, music and resilience, is a way of instilling confidence, honor and hope for the future, especially in impressionable youth.
—David McGrath, Chicago Tribune, 13 Mar. 2026
Half of that is instilling that attack mentality.
—Tim Britton, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2026
CBS News, 22 Apr. 2026
The college aims to give its students an education that is not just about their work but about their lives—instilling in them a sense of purpose, restoring their feeling of competence, teaching them virtue.
—Emma Green, New Yorker, 17 Apr. 2026
Pinney credits her parents and grandparents for instilling the values of being neighborly and contributing through community volunteering.
—News Release, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Apr. 2026
Carson noted the importance of instilling the belief of American exceptionalism in children.
—Ashley J. Dimella, FOXNews.com, 29 Mar. 2026
The agents and officers aren’t trained in airport security, and critics say the armed officers are instilling fear in American travelers.
—Elizabeth Robinson, NBC news, 24 Mar. 2026
Watching players grow, instilling confidence, laughing and, of course, winning with them, is still important for Auriemmma, who with Dailey by his side is in the stretch run of his 41st season and about to turn 72.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 15 Mar. 2026
That focusing on strengths, such as literature, humor, music and resilience, is a way of instilling confidence, honor and hope for the future, especially in impressionable youth.
—David McGrath, Chicago Tribune, 13 Mar. 2026
Half of that is instilling that attack mentality.
—Tim Britton, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instilling
Verb
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Don’t expect to hear the last of this for a long time, not least because police are looking into video footage that appeared to show a York player planting a left hand on a Rochdale fan amid the pandemonium.—
Phil Hay,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
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Additionally, planting garlic bulbs around the perimeter of your garden can create a protective barrier against deer.—
SJ McShane,
Martha Stewart,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Today, beef inflation rapidly outpaces regular food inflation due, in part, to severe drought conditions starting in 2022 that raised feed prices and discouraged farmers from breeding cattle.—
Tristan Bove,
Fortune,
21 Apr. 2026
-
Sanjar also has figured out that the most efficient time of year to deploy them is summer, when snakes are fattening up for breeding season in late fall.—
Bill Kearney,
Sun Sentinel,
19 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Vagus nerve stimulation for epilepsy and depression generally involves implanting an electrical stimulator in the left side of a patient’s chest, where the vagus nerve passes.—
Elizabeth Riley,
The Conversation,
26 Mar. 2026
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Attorney Ben Ikuta claims that Acacio continued to perform medical procedures on patients while his license was suspended, including performing transfers and implanting embryos.—
Chelsea Hylton,
CBS News,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
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His joint-embedding predictive architecture (JEPA) is designed to build machines that develop internal models of the world through observation, the way humans do, rather than through text prediction.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
23 Apr. 2026
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By embedding access, authorship and representation into the filmmaking, the project reflects the principles of self-determination and leadership that the movement demanded.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Instilling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instilling. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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