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Antonyms for instinct

Grammar : Noun
Spell : in-stingkt
Phonetic Transcription : ˈɪn stɪŋkt

Definition of instinct

Origin :
  • early 15c., "a prompting," from Latin instinctus "instigation, impulse," noun use of past participle of instinguere "to incite, impel," from in- "on" (see in- (2)) + stinguere "prick, goad," from PIE *steig- "to prick, stick, pierce" (see stick (v.)). Meaning "animal faculty of intuitive perception" is from mid-15c., from notion of "natural prompting." Sense of "innate tendency" is first recorded 1560s.
  • noun gut feeling, idea
Example sentences :
  • She said it, as if guided by an instinct, to sound the depth of his love for her.
  • Extract from : « Malbone » by Thomas Wentworth Higginson
  • What instinct made you choose that shade of pale green for your frock?
  • Extract from : « Viviette » by William J. Locke
  • Was it an instinct, she wondered—a reminder that there was in them material for manhood?
  • Extract from : « Ester Ried Yet Speaking » by Isabella Alden
  • Yet she wondered if the instinct were not dormant, needing but the suggestion.
  • Extract from : « Ester Ried Yet Speaking » by Isabella Alden
  • His instinct of sympathy with which he had greeted her at the outset was repelled, and made of no avail.
  • Extract from : « Within the Law » by Marvin Dana
  • Nature has provided for this by evolving the instinct of docility.
  • Extract from : « A Treatise on Parents and Children » by George Bernard Shaw
  • Some instinct warned her that this danger was even worse than it seemed.
  • Extract from : « Within the Law » by Marvin Dana
  • Usually one might count on the woman's silence, her instinct for self-protection.
  • Extract from : « K » by Mary Roberts Rinehart
  • Just as the last ones were leaving, some instinct told me that Mr. Hynes had come.
  • Extract from : « The Bacillus of Beauty » by Harriet Stark
  • It is the newspaper man's instinct to be in the center of the fray.
  • Extract from : « In the Midst of Alarms » by Robert Barr

Synonyms for instinct

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019