Synonyms of instructs

instructs

verb

present tense third-person singular of instruct

1

as in teaches

to cause to acquire knowledge or skill in some field

spent his military career instructing young pilots

Synonyms & Similar Words

• teaches
• educates
• schools
• indoctrinates
• lessons
• trains
• tutors
• informs
• prepares
• coaches
• guides
• preaches
• instills
• directs
• lectures
• grounds
• leads
• mentors
• moralizes
• introduces
• qualifies
• inculcates
• initiates
• drills
• enlightens
• edifies
• familiarizes
• primes
• shows
• imparts (to)
• retrains
• verses
• fits
• habilitates
• briefs
• rears
• implants
• homeschools
• catechizes
• reteaches
• reeducates
• reschools

2

as in informs

to give information to

instructed everyone in the use of the new telephone system

Synonyms & Similar Words

• informs
• advises
• tells
• teaches
• educates
• briefs
• apprises
• acquaints
• familiarizes
• enlightens
• notifies
• clears
• clues (in)
• verses
• hips
• fills in
• convinces
• alerts
• advertises
• assures
• catches up
• reassures
• wises (up)
• lets someone know
• keeps (someone) posted
• certifies
• discloses (to)
• announces (to)
• lectures
• schools
• warrants
• tutors
• disabuses
• disenchants
• undeceives
• disillusions

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• misleads
• misinforms

3

as in tells

to issue orders to (someone) by right of authority

the proctors instructed everyone to put their pencils down and hand in their tests

Synonyms & Similar Words

• tells
• orders
• asks
• commands
• directs
• advises
• enjoins
• begs
• warns
• bosses (around)
• bids
• adjures
• appoints
• requires
• requests
• authorizes
• compels
• charges
• assigns
• entreats
• beseeches
• supervises
• obliges
• counsels
• manages
• forces
• leads
• conducts
• oversees
• petitions
• constrains
• coerces
• controls
• superintends
• commissions

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• follows
• minds
• obeys
• observes
• keeps
• complies (with)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of instructs

Beside the cigarette vendor, another man is pulling a rainbow fishing net he's woven from its display on the long branch of a tree and instructs a cruiser to crouch before him. — Charlie Hobbs, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 Sep. 2026

This base pair substitution can, in some cases, radically change the shape of the protein the DNA instructs a cell to produce. — Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 8 Sep. 2026

With that, Kyle gives Oleksa a phone and instructs her to Signal chat all the info on Belarus safehouse locations, and the hunt is on. — Andy Andersen, Vulture, 6 Sep. 2026

Epic says the site instructs Windows users to press the Windows key and R, paste content from the clipboard and press Enter. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 4 Sep. 2026

The judge instructs the jury to go back and deliberate further. — Rebekah Riess, CNN Money, 3 Sep. 2026

The Gap Between Agreement And Action​ Most change guidance instructs leaders how to gain commitment. — John Radman, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026

Using this simple sequence, Grok then follows the command as soon as the user instructs the assistant to summarize the page. — Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 20 Aug. 2026

The voiceover instructs the user on how to plug it in before first use, turn it on, and get the headset up and running. — Jon Martindale, PC Magazine, 20 Aug. 2026