instinctive

[ in-stingk-tiv ]

/ ɪnˈstɪŋk tɪv /

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See synonyms for: instinctive / instinctively on Thesaurus.com

adjective

of, relating to, or of the nature of instinct.

prompted by or resulting from or as if from instinct; natural; unlearned: an instinctive will to survive.

OTHER WORDS FOR instinctive

2 spontaneous, intuitive, unpremeditated.

See synonyms for instinctive on Thesaurus.com

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Also in·stinc·tu·al

[in-stingk-choo-uhl]. /ɪnˈstɪŋk tʃu əl/.

Origin of instinctive

First recorded in 1640–50; instinct¹ + -ive

OTHER WORDS FROM instinctive

in·stinc·tive·ly, in·stinc·tu·al·ly, adverbhalf-in·stinc·tive, adjectivenon·in·stinc·tive, adjectivenon·in·stinc·tu·al, adjective

sem·i-in·stinc·tive, adjectiveun·in·stinc·tive, adjectiveun·in·stinc·tive·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use instinctive in a sentence

To keep a commonplace is instinctual to intellectual cultivation.
Social Media: Nothing New? Commonplace Books As Predecessor to Pinterest|Kelsey McKinney|August 16, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Rather, there is a constant back-and-forth between the conscious and the unconscious, between the rational and the instinctual.
Your Brain Is Not as Rational as You May Think It Is|Jesse Singal|April 28, 2012|DAILY BEAST
This was primal and instinctual and it gripped me like an invisible claw.
The Extinction Parade: An Original Zombie Story by Max Brooks|Max Brooks|January 14, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Style, she believes, is instinctual, however intellectual her insights might seem.
Fashion's Miracle Worker|Elizabeth Gates|May 27, 2009|DAILY BEAST

Still staring into her daughter's eyes, she reaches an instant, instinctual decision.
Behind the Glow|Kevin Sessums|October 6, 2008|DAILY BEAST
Phildee's probe swept past the laboring mind directly into her telepathic, instinctual centers.
Riya's Foundling|Algirdas Jonas Budrys
I have the calling card of reason plus an instinctual nature.
The Land of Look Behind|Paul Cameron Brown
Still, though a behaviorist, he upheld certain instinctual motivation theories.
Strange Alliance|Bryce Walton
One concerns the human desire to form an alliance in the form of family, which seems almost instinctual.
The Civilization of Illiteracy|Mihai Nadin
It was once, when men were primitively close to Nature, instinctual knowledge.
Incredible Adventures|Algernon Blackwood

British Dictionary definitions for instinctive

instinctive

instinctual

/ (ɪnˈstɪŋktɪv) /

adjective

of, relating to, or resulting from instinct

conditioned so as to appear innatean instinctive movement in driving

Derived forms of instinctive

instinctively or instinctually, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

instinctive

OTHER WORDS FOR instinctive

Origin of instinctive

OTHER WORDS FROM instinctive

Words related to instinctive

How to use instinctive in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for instinctive

instinctual

Derived forms of instinctive