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
Manaea tinkers and sometimes operates on instinct and feel.
—
Will Sammon, New York Times, 5 June 2026
But after several minutes passed, her instincts took over.
—Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 5 June 2026
Why the instinct exists at all is still an open question.
—Niranjana Rajalakshmi, Popular Science, 4 June 2026
His instincts proved prescient.
—Julie K. Brown, Miami Herald, 4 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for instinct
Will Sammon, New York Times, 5 June 2026
But after several minutes passed, her instincts took over.
—Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 5 June 2026
Why the instinct exists at all is still an open question.
—Niranjana Rajalakshmi, Popular Science, 4 June 2026
His instincts proved prescient.
—Julie K. Brown, Miami Herald, 4 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for instinct
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instinct
Noun
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There is still a tendency in tech to assume serious funding has to flow through San Francisco or New York, but capital is increasingly available in markets that historically sat outside the center of the venture ecosystem.—
Hebron Sher,
Fortune,
29 May 2026
-
Overprivileged students had a tendency to see teachers and headmasters not as authority figures but as people of lower social standing.—
Thomas Adam,
The Conversation,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
Is his best skill dribbling, incisive passing or scoring with both feet?—
Liam Twomey,
New York Times,
11 June 2026
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This expansion helps workers gain new skills, such as becoming a certified nursing assistant or welder, through federal assistance for training programs lasting 8 to 15 weeks.—
Brittney Melton,
NPR,
11 June 2026
Noun
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Courtesy of Focus Features & CBS Despite its inclination toward the otherworldly, the original Twilight Zone created by TV pioneer Rod Serling was, at its core, about the weakness of human nature.—
Josh Weiss,
Forbes.com,
11 June 2026
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Maybe because there’s some cultural inclination toward making an idiosyncratic mark on one’s little corner.—
Jessica Kozuka,
Travel + Leisure,
10 June 2026
Noun
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This era of Jane Remover—the music, which mainlines the noisiest impulses of SounDC, the discourse—is brasher and more acidic than ever.—
Mano Sundaresan,
Pitchfork,
10 June 2026
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The humanistic impulse tends to make reason the final authority, whereas Christianity is a revelatory faith.—
Peter Wehner,
The Atlantic,
10 June 2026
Noun
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His humble and docile disposition resembles that of the air sign Libra, which holds moral righteousness and fair-mindedness.—
Lisa Stardust,
PEOPLE,
5 June 2026
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Splashed across surfaces and accessories, the color establishes a sunny disposition, no matter the locale.—
Kathryn O'Shea-Evans,
Better Homes & Gardens,
2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Instinct.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instinct. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
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