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.
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Recent Examples of instincts
Yet, those clusters of information have more often led to more good decisions than bad, a lot of which is credited to the instincts of Begiristain.
—
Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2025
Suddenly, Mickey is offering him a chance to play the main stage, which sets Sam’s greedier instincts into overdrive.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 13 Sep. 2025
Zvi is an exciting add for Sugar23 given her strategic vision, sharp instincts, and long-standing relationships across the entertainment industry.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 12 Sep. 2025
Dogs can bark, but robots can talk back Even the most advanced quadruped robot on the market today can’t match a real dog’s innate sense of smell or its highly developed navigational instincts.
—Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 11 Sep. 2025
Following the shorelines of the Great Lakes, monarch butterflies are gradually leaving Michigan as their instincts take them south.
—Sarah Moore, Freep.com, 11 Sep. 2025
When mindfulness and emotional balance, your instincts can serve as a compass.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
If that’s your reality, trust your instincts, stay professional and begin looking for spaces where curiosity is welcomed, not punished.
—Rolling Stone Culture Council, Rolling Stone, 10 Sep. 2025
But when the game changes, old instincts can hold companies back.
—Brad Rencher, Fortune, 5 Sep. 2025
Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2025
Suddenly, Mickey is offering him a chance to play the main stage, which sets Sam’s greedier instincts into overdrive.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 13 Sep. 2025
Zvi is an exciting add for Sugar23 given her strategic vision, sharp instincts, and long-standing relationships across the entertainment industry.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 12 Sep. 2025
Dogs can bark, but robots can talk back Even the most advanced quadruped robot on the market today can’t match a real dog’s innate sense of smell or its highly developed navigational instincts.
—Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 11 Sep. 2025
Following the shorelines of the Great Lakes, monarch butterflies are gradually leaving Michigan as their instincts take them south.
—Sarah Moore, Freep.com, 11 Sep. 2025
When mindfulness and emotional balance, your instincts can serve as a compass.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
If that’s your reality, trust your instincts, stay professional and begin looking for spaces where curiosity is welcomed, not punished.
—Rolling Stone Culture Council, Rolling Stone, 10 Sep. 2025
But when the game changes, old instincts can hold companies back.
—Brad Rencher, Fortune, 5 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instincts
Noun
-
While bad tendencies showed up in each loss enough good things seemed to appear in the wins.—
Larry Fleisher,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
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To identify workaholics, the researchers used established psychological surveys that measure both excessive and compulsive working tendencies.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Two years painstakingly transforming a 200-year-old Philadelphia row house into the restaurant equivalent of a Formula 1 car; nearly 20 more honing his skills in kitchens across the city, learning, sharpening, waiting.—
The Bon Appétit Staff,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
12 Sep. 2025
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The World Economic Forum has noted that AI should develop rather than replace critical thinking skills, but many institutions are inadvertently doing the opposite.—
Cornelia C. Walther,
Forbes.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
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While the corrupt scheme was well documented journalistically and much of the evidence is indicative, ultimately Argentina's Judiciary followed its political inclinations all the way to the top.—
Agustino Fontevecchia,
Forbes.com,
27 Aug. 2025
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The artist’s ability to straddle the line between tomboy inclinations and ultra-glam moments is what has always attracted me to her style.—
Robyn Mowatt,
Essence,
20 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Rusty wanted to do something stupid, but the calming presence of Billy negated all of Rusty’s throbbing impulses.—
Manuel Muñoz,
Literary Hub,
11 Sep. 2025
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In competitive authoritarian regimes, however, there’s a constant push and pull between democratic and autocratic impulses.—
Karrin Vasby Anderson,
The Conversation,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The same can be said of Mescal, who’s already parlayed playing men of muscular physique and melancholy dispositions into above-the-title movie stardom.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
8 Sep. 2025
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The state continues to see a backlog in its gun background check system, with more than 57,000 criminal arrests not yet linked to court case dispositions, according to TBI.—
Laura L. Davis,
Nashville Tennessean,
24 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Instincts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instincts. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
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