instruct

American  

[in-struhkt] / ɪnˈstrʌkt /

verb (used with object)

1. to furnish with knowledge, especially by a systematic method; teach; train; educate.

   Synonyms:

   school, indoctrinate, discipline, drill, coach, tutor

2. to furnish with orders or directions; direct; order; command.

   The doctor instructed me to diet.

   Synonyms:

   prescribe

3. to furnish with information; inform; apprise.

   Synonyms:

   enlighten

4. Law. (of a judge) to guide (a jury) by outlining the legal principles involved in the case under consideration.

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instruct British  

/ ɪnˈstrʌkt /

verb

1. to direct to do something; order

2. to teach (someone) how to do (something)

3. to furnish with information; apprise

4. law

   1. (esp of a client to his solicitor or a solicitor to a barrister) to give relevant facts or information to

   2. to authorize (a barrister or solicitor) to conduct a case on a person's behalf

      to instruct counsel

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Related Words

See teach.

Other Word Forms

• instructedly adverb
• instructedness noun
• instructible adjective
• misinstruct verb (used with object)
• overinstruct verb (used with object)
• preinstruct verb (used with object)
• quasi-instructed adjective
• reinstruct verb (used with object)
• self-instructed adjective
• self-instructing adjective
• uninstructible adjective
• uninstructing adjective
• well-instructed adjective

Etymology

Origin of instruct

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin instructus, past participle of instruere “to equip, train, set in order,” equivalent to in- “in” + struc- (variant stem of struere “to put together”) + -tus past participle suffix; see in- ²

Explanation

This website is designed to instruct visitors about the meaning of words and their correct usage. To instruct is to give instructions, to teach. Teachers are often called instructors because their job is to instruct, to give knowledge or instructions. The subtle difference between "teach" and instruct is that you can teach almost anything: concepts, ideas, theories or, say, history. When you instruct someone, you're giving them a set of tools or tasks to do something specific. That's why furniture, toys, and model rocket kits come with instructions: they instruct you how to assemble them.

Example Sentences

Families described how they had to instruct solicitors, threaten court action and, as in Jacqueline's case, hire debt collectors to recoup money owed to them.

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

If his drone is shot down, he can easily turn to his fellow pilot and instruct them on where the shooter is, he said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 5, 2026

Another appears to instruct Claude Code in some cases to go “undercover” and not reveal that it is an AI when publishing code to platforms like GitHub.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026

The council voted in December to instruct city agencies to produce those reports within 30 days.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 3, 2026

So if this book doesn’t instruct about punctuation, what does it do?

From "Eats, Shoots & Leaves" by Author

Related Words

• advise
• brief
• discipline
• disclose
• educate
• guide
• notify
• tell
• train
• tutor