instructor
Americannoun
-
instructors
plural
-
a person who instructs; teacher.
- Synonyms:
- pedagogue, preceptor, schoolmaster, tutor
-
a teacher in a college or university who ranks below an assistant professor.
noun
-
someone who instructs; teacher
-
a university teacher ranking below assistant professor
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of instructor
1425–75; late Middle English < Latin, equivalent to instruc-, variant stem of instruere ( see instruct) + -tor -tor
Compare meaning
How does instructor compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
An instructor is a teacher. One can be an instructor of just about anything, but it usually applies to teaching hands-on skills, like a water-skiing instructor or the instructor of the knitting class held at the community center. When you instruct, or teach, other people how to do something, you are their instructor. At a college, you might hear some of the people who teach classes referred to as instructors and others as professors. An instructor might teach only part-time, or be a graduate student, or, for the moment at least, not be on the path to receiving the title of professor. Still, instructors are teachers: they have their own classes and students.
Vocabulary lists containing instructor
Occupations
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List 2
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -er, -or
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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.
See Examples For:
He says he found a supportive community and, after studying hard, he now works as a local gym instructor.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
"Airdropping personnel with parachute systems is impractical because, unfortunately, the enemy's assets can neutralize them very rapidly," said 24-year-old instructor Axel.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
That changed when professional mahjong instructor Samantha Richman arrived at camp.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
The 75-minute Yin Yoga session is led by a trauma-informed instructor.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
Beloved Arcanum instructor Masterji Thakur got tangled in Gia Trivelino’s twisted web, reporters learned.
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
Ukraine's instructors say this change means conventional soldiers have to to be even better prepared for the mental hardships.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
Across the Northeast and New England camp corridor, summer camps have hired mahjong instructors to lead multiday clinics and are incorporating play into daily schedules.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
In their report, the staffers also noted that there have been few well-run studies assessing the safety and efficacy of peptides, which are essentially instructors, telling amino-acid chains how to fix or improve certain cells.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026
In that case, the city issued 22 subpoenas to financial and social media companies seeking information regarding the two instructors and their associates, according to court documents.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2026
Dr. Treisman was inspired to think differently by one of her instructors, Richard Gregory.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
