instincts

noun

plural of instinct
as in tendencies
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.

Related 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 instincts The Moon enters Pisces and your 1st House of Self, bringing your mood, body, instincts, and personal needs into focus. — Tarot.com, The Orlando Sentinel, 27 Aug. 2026 The lesson Philipps is taking from her experience is to gain knowledge and trust your instincts about your health. — Armando Tinoco, Deadline, 26 Aug. 2026 But that doesn’t mean the show is cured of its worst instincts, like turning people’s very serious, consequential life problems into entertainment. — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 25 Aug. 2026 The affidavit did not state how or why Ibarra's group chose to drive to the Sinawav Lodge to pursue the man who fled the party, but their instincts were correct. — Logan Smith, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026 Siena has incredible comic instincts and brings so much heart to Nora. — Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 24 Aug. 2026 His football endurance might still be coming along; his football instincts might still be creeping back; his contact-balance is still a skill that needs to be strengthened after years of atrophy. — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 22 Aug. 2026 But Abney’s instincts and fearless makeup were always going to leave an impact on this staff. — Colton Pouncy, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026 One of those instincts was making room for emotional vulnerability between Black men. — Desjah Altvater, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instincts
  1. tendencies
  2. skills
  3. inclinations
  4. impulses
  5. dispositions
Noun
  • This sense of threat can trigger authoritarian tendencies, including support for taking away civil liberties like the ability to give public speeches or run for political office from disliked others.
    — Paul Djupe, The Conversation, 20 Aug. 2026
  • The New York Young Republicans Club’s Nazi tendencies are well known.
    — Ali Breland, The Atlantic, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of tendencies
Noun
  • The film realistically portrays their struggles to produce resources, emphasizing practical skills, patience, and learning over traditional survivalism.
    — Solitaire Townsend, Forbes.com, 23 Aug. 2026
  • DeVito has a nice scramble DeVito showed off his running skills in the second quarter, breaking free for a 36-yard scramble to get the Patriots into Eagles territory for the first time.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of skills
Noun
  • Putin will eventually leave office, whether by death, illness, or—against all observable inclinations—stepping aside.
    — Julian G. Waller, Foreign Affairs, 7 Aug. 2026
  • People with gene variants that affect these inclinations may also be at a higher risk of developing obesity and type 2 diabetes, researchers found.
    — Emily Kay Votruba, EverydayHealth.com, 28 July 2026
Definition of inclinations
Noun
  • Initially, diplomats assigned to the region sought to counter Bukele’s growing influence by sharply denouncing his anti-democratic impulses.
    — Daniel Castro, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Sigmund Freud wrote that dreams were a kind of acting-out of repressed impulses.
    — Veronique Greenwood, Time, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of impulses
Noun
  • The state's Clean Slate legislation addresses the criminal records system itself, including procedures for identifying missing dispositions and correcting incomplete criminal history information.
    — Alonzo Martinez, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
  • The dispositions in the Massachusetts arrests were not immediately clear.
    — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 25 June 2026
Definition of dispositions

Browse Nearby Words

instinctively
instincts
instinctual
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Instincts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instincts. Accessed 28 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of cogent

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 28

Why do we say 'break a leg'?
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All