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- Dictionaryinstinct
noun
- 1. an innate, typically fixed pattern of behaviour in animals in response to certain stimuli: "the homing instinct"
adjective
- 1. imbued or filled with (a quality, especially a desirable one): formal "these canvases are instinct with passion"
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The meaning of INSTINCT is a natural or inherent aptitude, impulse, or capacity. How to use instinct in a sentence.
the way people or animals naturally react or behave, without having to think or learn about it: All his instincts told him to stay near the car and wait for help. [ + to infinitive ] Her first instinct was to run. It is instinct that tells the birds when to begin their migration.
An instinct is the natural tendency that a person has to behave or react in a particular way.
An instinct is something you don't need to learn — it happens naturally, without you even thinking about it. Babies cry by instinct, and ducks follow their mother by instinct.
INSTINCT meaning: 1 : a way of behaving, thinking, or feeling that is not learned a natural desire or tendency that makes you want to act in a particular way; 2 : something you know without learning it or thinking about it.
1. an inborn pattern of activity or tendency to action common to a given biological species. 2. a natural or innate impulse, inclination, or tendency. 3. a natural aptitude or gift: an instinct for making money. 4. natural intuitive power.
/ˈɪnstɪŋkt/ [uncountable, countable] a natural quality that makes people and animals tend to behave in a particular way using the knowledge and abilities that they were born with rather than thought or training. She did not seem to have any of the usual maternal instincts.
An instinct is the natural tendency that a person has to behave or react in a particular way.
There are four meanings listed in OED's entry for the noun instinct, one of which is labelled obsolete. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.
instinct (that…) a feeling that makes you do something or believe that something is true, even though it is not based on facts or reason synonym intuition Her instincts had been right. See instinct in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Check pronunciation: instinct.
