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
The aggressive and indiscriminate tactics ICE deploys directly disrupt this dynamic, instilling fear and discouraging our immigrant neighbors from leaving their homes to engage in what were once their routine activities.
—
Aubrey Jackson Soller, Baltimore Sun, 3 Feb. 2026
The offensive tackle was a force to be reckoned with, instilling fear in opposing defenses.
—Brendan Connelly, Boston Herald, 1 Feb. 2026
Several cities across the country have seen an increase in immigration raids, which community members say are instilling fear in residents.
—Chelsea Hylton, CBS News, 30 Jan. 2026
The Prince and Princess of Wales are both passionate about sports and fitness, instilling that interest in their children, Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7.
—Janine Henni, PEOPLE, 20 Jan. 2026
Changing the Giants’ culture, restoring leadership to their locker room and instilling higher expectations into the building will be no easy task.
—Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 20 Jan. 2026
Aiken points to former students who became educators, doctors and professionals outside the arts, crediting dance for instilling transferable skills.
—Kansas City Star, 14 Jan. 2026
Perhaps no one is better at instilling confidence in players of all experience levels at that position.
—Mike Sando, New York Times, 12 Jan. 2026
Authoritarian regimes—and the militias and security agencies that buttress them—rely on instilling fear in their subjects.
—Elizabeth Tsurkov, The Atlantic, 11 Jan. 2026
Aubrey Jackson Soller, Baltimore Sun, 3 Feb. 2026
The offensive tackle was a force to be reckoned with, instilling fear in opposing defenses.
—Brendan Connelly, Boston Herald, 1 Feb. 2026
Several cities across the country have seen an increase in immigration raids, which community members say are instilling fear in residents.
—Chelsea Hylton, CBS News, 30 Jan. 2026
The Prince and Princess of Wales are both passionate about sports and fitness, instilling that interest in their children, Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7.
—Janine Henni, PEOPLE, 20 Jan. 2026
Changing the Giants’ culture, restoring leadership to their locker room and instilling higher expectations into the building will be no easy task.
—Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 20 Jan. 2026
Aiken points to former students who became educators, doctors and professionals outside the arts, crediting dance for instilling transferable skills.
—Kansas City Star, 14 Jan. 2026
Perhaps no one is better at instilling confidence in players of all experience levels at that position.
—Mike Sando, New York Times, 12 Jan. 2026
Authoritarian regimes—and the militias and security agencies that buttress them—rely on instilling fear in their subjects.
—Elizabeth Tsurkov, The Atlantic, 11 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instilling
Verb
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Organic gardener Sumyati Kashyapi says one common mistake is planting the seeds too densely, and not thinning properly after germination.—
Samantha Johnson,
Martha Stewart,
22 Feb. 2026
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Use wider spacing when planting as an accent.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
22 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In the long term, this failure to address deep social problems contributes to the erosion of people’s trust in governments and institutions, breeding nihilism and an attraction to demagogues who claim to have easy answers.—
Rob Wolfe,
The Atlantic,
19 Feb. 2026
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That group of friends is just breeding toxicity with each other.—
Jackie Strause,
HollywoodReporter,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Score and Mills, a Brevard County couple, sued IVF Life — which does business as Fertility Center of Orlando — last month for implanting Score with the the wrong embryo.—
Martin E. Comas,
The Orlando Sentinel,
18 Feb. 2026
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The bill would prohibit the importation, sale, and offer of sale of pets that are transgenic, meaning they are created by implanting a gene from one species into another.—
Kate Wolffe,
Sacbee.com,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Makeup head Frances Hannon (nominated for a Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild award) and Grande collaborated on Glinda’s look, embedding subtle changes to reflect the passage of time, such as making her hair longer and blonder.—
Jazz Tangcay,
Variety,
20 Feb. 2026
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To that end, AI investment in China is focused on embedding the technology into manufacturing, logistics, energy, finance, and public services.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Instilling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instilling. Accessed 24 Feb. 2026.
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