as in automatic
done instantly and without conscious thought or decision
the birds' instinctual response is to fly away when startled
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Recent Examples of instinctual
Maybe this instinctual allure is why waiting lists for allotments have doubled and tripled in the past decade.
—
Literary Hub, 19 Feb. 2026
The former five-star recruit is big (6-3, 238), instinctual, and features impressive lateral quickness and movement skills.
—Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
More than a decade later, their chemistry is best described by Murray as telepathic, intellectual, instinctual.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 15 Feb. 2026
Zal also praised Zhao’s instinctual approach to filmmaking.
—Kennedy French, Variety, 9 Jan. 2026
Collectively, love becomes more instinctual and self-led.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 7 Jan. 2026
When Mike sees Holly (Nell Fisher) take over his D&D table, his instinctual protectiveness, even jealousy, soon fades to pride.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 1 Jan. 2026
Because this reaction is instinctual, training a dog to ignore small animals can be hard.
—Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2025
Cubs manager Craig Counsell used three main adjectives to describe the roster — athletic, experienced and instinctual — while empowering his coaching staff to draw out those strengths.
—Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025
Literary Hub, 19 Feb. 2026
The former five-star recruit is big (6-3, 238), instinctual, and features impressive lateral quickness and movement skills.
—Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
More than a decade later, their chemistry is best described by Murray as telepathic, intellectual, instinctual.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 15 Feb. 2026
Zal also praised Zhao’s instinctual approach to filmmaking.
—Kennedy French, Variety, 9 Jan. 2026
Collectively, love becomes more instinctual and self-led.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 7 Jan. 2026
When Mike sees Holly (Nell Fisher) take over his D&D table, his instinctual protectiveness, even jealousy, soon fades to pride.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 1 Jan. 2026
Because this reaction is instinctual, training a dog to ignore small animals can be hard.
—Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2025
Cubs manager Craig Counsell used three main adjectives to describe the roster — athletic, experienced and instinctual — while empowering his coaching staff to draw out those strengths.
—Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instinctual
Adjective
-
Each employee gets their own retirement account, with automatic contributions made from their paychecks.—
Jeanne Sahadi,
CNN Money,
16 Feb. 2026
-
The transistor acts like an automatic switch.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
15 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The leaf shutter in the lens has a range from bulb to 1/500th of a second and is controlled via a mechanical film advance lever built around brass gears and mechanisms that provides a tactile experience.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Driving through deep water can also damage a vehicle's mechanical and electrical systems.—
STAR-TELEGRAM WEATHER BOT,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
14 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
What emerged was a season defined by ease and quiet confidence, where modern dressing feels instinctive, purposeful and deeply personal.—
Lisa Lockwood,
Footwear News,
17 Feb. 2026
-
Johnson is instinctive, capable of quickly diagnosing layered route concepts, and can bait quarterbacks into making a mistake.—
Eddie Brown,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
17 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
After your baby is born progesterone (which inhibits breastmilk production) drops and prolactin, which controls milk volume, and oxytocin, which triggers the let-down reflex increases, explains Nadine Rosenblum, the perinatal lactation program coordinator at The Johns Hopkins Hospital.—
Hannah Silverman,
Parents,
16 Feb. 2026
-
This local reflex system reduces damage, improves safety and makes interactions feel more natural.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
12 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
His response was considered a striking, and spontaneous, moral condemnation of McCarthy’s excesses.—
Kristen Monroe,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Feb. 2026
-
The spontaneous pep talk from Madonna came shortly before Glenn competed on the ice for the women’s short, which ended with the American at 13th place in the overall skater standings.—
Hannah Dailey,
Billboard,
17 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Rosalba worked in the accounting department of a mail order catalog company and later helped her husband run a mechanic shop in Granada Hills.—
Matthew Ormseth,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Approximately 55 bus driver, bus monitor and mechanic roles will be cut.—
Kathryn Muchnick,
Louisville Courier Journal,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Lunar rocks and soil offered novel insights into the moon’s origin and composition, and more recent analysis of previously untouched Apollo samples, as well as samples retrieved by robotic missions, revealed the surprising discovery of water trapped in rocks thought to be bone-dry.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
21 Feb. 2026
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The Paiza Collection’s 160 butlers go through an extensive training program, and what that produces isn’t just robotic precision but also a culture of genuinely warm hospitality.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
21 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Two years before Tony Clark’s sudden resignation made Bruce Meyer the head of the Major League Baseball Players Association, Meyer composed a letter to quiet the union members calling for his ouster.—
Andy McCullough,
New York Times,
19 Feb. 2026
-
The Major League Baseball Players Association has elected a new executive director following the sudden departure of Tony Clark, who had led the union for over a decade.—
Hannah Keyser,
CNN Money,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Instinctual.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instinctual. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
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