instinct
noun
an inborn pattern of activity or tendency to action common to a given biological species.
instincts
-
pluralof instinct.plural
The grammatical form denoting more than one person, place, thing, or idea.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Whatever lawmakers’ first, unsatisfactory instincts, they eventually will have to do their jobs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
It was not as though the open air of a farmers market was going to cure my base shopping instincts.
From Salon ● Aug. 4, 2026
After entering the music industry as teenagers, the British girl band say they grew to trust their own instincts during six months making their new record.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
His longing for homecoming and the care of his mother seem like recognizably human instincts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
He believed that children, like little monkeys, were born with certain instincts of self-preservation, but that the instincts vanished because babies were kept cooped up in a crib.
From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
