as in tendency
a usually innate ability or desire to perform a specific activity
Pouncing on mice is a cat's natural instinct. We needed all of our survival instincts to make it through the weeks lost at sea.
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Recent Examples of instinct
While the moment may have caught Good off guard, the reaction itself is right in line with the breed’s natural instincts.
—
Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Mar. 2026
Her fashion design background reinforced the instinct.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 30 Mar. 2026
When you're burned out, the instinct is often to push through.
—Tiffany Aliche, SELF, 30 Mar. 2026
The 5-foot-9 rookie infielder looks like a special hitter with sharp instincts on the basepaths.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for instinct
Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Mar. 2026
Her fashion design background reinforced the instinct.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 30 Mar. 2026
When you're burned out, the instinct is often to push through.
—Tiffany Aliche, SELF, 30 Mar. 2026
The 5-foot-9 rookie infielder looks like a special hitter with sharp instincts on the basepaths.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for instinct
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instinct
Noun
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A lot of dance music leans more dark and some of his melodic tendencies are brighter in a way, more major key.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
27 Mar. 2026
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History may not repeat, but it sure as hell has a tendency to trigger the occasional sense of déjà vu.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Sure, the equipment is better, the skill level higher, the compensation astronomical.—
Bill Goodykoontz,
AZCentral.com,
26 Mar. 2026
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What looks at first like a cooking class, is actually a doctor's appointment designed to help children and families build real-life skills around food and health.—
Breana Pitts,
CBS News,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
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If conservatism is something of an inclination or disposition, leftism of the more radical sort is a form of all-consuming identity, one that fills vacuums in otherwise empty lives and comprehensively guides behavior.—
Bradley Gitz,
Arkansas Online,
23 Mar. 2026
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The 11 satellites on board are flying to a mid-inclination orbit.—
Richard Tribou,
The Orlando Sentinel,
22 Mar. 2026
Noun
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As a result, the franchise is caught between the competing impulses to preserve its legacy as a romantic ideal and to modernize itself for an audience that no longer believes in that mirage — resulting, most recently, in a casting that was doomed to fail on all fronts.—
Shamira Ibrahim,
HollywoodReporter,
25 Mar. 2026
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However, emotional impulses to act are not enough to justify war.—
Dr. Michael Good,
Hartford Courant,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Ronald’s successor at the center of the story is Anthony Norman, another young man with an open face and an inviting disposition.—
Inkoo Kang,
New Yorker,
27 Mar. 2026
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Before filing the Order to Show Cause, the Enforcement Division gives the subject the opportunity to resolve the matter through a disposition agreement.—
Rick Sobey,
Boston Herald,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Instinct.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instinct. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
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