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.

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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 Forget about the analytics, the matchups or the gut instincts. — Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 28 June 2026 Brands are built on consistency and control, and those instincts have served them well everywhere else. — Jordan P. Kelley, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026 Now several thousand dollars richer, everyone can succumb to their worst instincts. — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 30 June 2026 Her anticipation is almost unfair as a product of quick instincts wrapped inside one of the most physically gifted frames in the league. — Nathan Canilao, Mercury News, 29 June 2026 The division of labor, as Han describes it, was less about separating tasks than about bringing complementary instincts to bear on the same material. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 28 June 2026 But their personalities, and political instincts, converge most strikingly around cities. — Andy Browne, semafor.com, 30 June 2026 Amron, Dane, Amanda and Alondra bring deep relationships and a modern understanding of the business, and Chinazam and Kashia have each earned these promotions through hard work and strong instincts. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 23 June 2026 Even with its loose boundaries of what’s acceptable in a Renaissance fantasy realm, the Midsummer Fantasy Renaissance Faire has developed keen instincts about what fits in its world and what doesn’t. — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 28 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instincts
  1. tendencies
  2. skills
  3. inclinations
  4. impulses
  5. dispositions
Noun
  • The same tendencies people are routinely told to correct are, in moderate form, closely tied to a busier, more exploratory style of thinking than most self-improvement advice accounts for.
    — Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
  • Plath shows up in Dederer’s book about (mostly) men who make great art and live monstrous lives (and what to do with them), but only as a woman who turns her violent tendencies against herself.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 1 July 2026
Definition of tendencies
Noun
  • State test scores for the 2025-26 school year are coming back, and Georgia public schools are part of a national pattern of declining reading and math skills.
    — Taylor Carney, AJC.com, 6 July 2026
  • The Rangers are adding Espinal for his valuable defensive versatility and contact skills, aiming to bolster their infield depth.
    — Peter Chawaga, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026
Definition of skills
Noun
  • Getty Choosing a college major has always been a big life decision, influenced by not only personal inclinations and talents, but also by starting salaries.
    — Courtney Connley-Hampton, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
  • There were inclinations to not fully believe in their capabilities against Argentina.
    — Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 4 June 2026
Definition of inclinations
Noun
  • As a result, the sanctity of the vote could rely on whether other government institutions and, ultimately, the citizenry can also mount a stand against the president’s worst impulses.
    — Toluse Olorunnipa, The Atlantic, 4 July 2026
  • After surgery, that device is programmed to send mild electrical impulses that block abnormal nerve signals and dramatically reduce tics.
    — Gabby Sartori, USA Today, 3 July 2026
Definition of impulses
Noun
  • The dispositions in the Massachusetts arrests were not immediately clear.
    — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 25 June 2026
  • Change the leader themselves — their behaviours, their habits, their dispositions.
    — Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Forbes.com, 19 June 2026
Definition of dispositions

Browse Nearby Words

instinctively
instincts
instinctual
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Cite this Entry

“Instincts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instincts. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of instincts for Spanish Speakers

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