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instance
[ in-stuhns ]
noun
- a case or occurrence of anything:
fresh instances of oppression.
- an example put forth in proof or illustration:
to cite a few instances.
- Also called in·stanced dun·geon. (in an online multiplayer video game) a zone, as a dungeon, to which access is limited to a player or group of players entering simultaneously and working together: each instance is one copy of the zone in which the quests, enemies, items, events, etc., are staged exclusively for the player or group accessing it, without interference from other player characters in the larger online population of the game server.
- Law. the institution and prosecution of a case.
- Archaic. urgency in speech or action.
- Obsolete. an impelling motive.
verb (used with object)
- to cite as an instance or example.
- to exemplify by an instance.
- (in an online multiplayer video game) to design (a zone) as a set of identical copies, staged exclusively for the player or group accessing it, without interference from the larger population of the game server, thereby presenting key narrative elements or achievements in a controlled environment:
The game developers instanced a winter wonderland with special quests for the holiday event.
verb (used without object)
- to cite an instance.
instance
/ ˈɪnstəns /
noun
- a case or particular example
- for instancefor instance for or as an example
- a specified stage in proceedings; step (in the phrases in the first, second, etc, instance )
- urgent request or demand (esp in the phrase at the instance of )
- logic
- an expression derived from another by instantiation
- See substitution
- archaic.motive or reason
verb
- to cite as an example
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Other Words From
- counter·instance noun
- un·instanced adjective
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Word History and Origins
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Word History and Origins
Origin of instance1
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Idioms and Phrases
- at the instance of, at the urging or suggestion of:
He applied for the assistantship at the instance of his professor.
- for instance, as an example; for example:
If you were to go to Italy, for instance, you would get a different perspective on our culture.
More idioms and phrases containing instance
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Synonym Study
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Example Sentences
They just reflect the range of breeds that were used to create the Heck cattle in the first instance.
For instance, Best Buy has over 40 million members in its customer loyalty program, Reward Zone.
For instance, how do you balance honesty with any protective urge?
El Bulli, for instance, previously named the best restaurant in the world, shuttered its doors after only a few decades.
This happens, for instance, in one out of five vaccinations against rubella.
For instance, the Limestone Polypody is not happy unless there is a certain amount of lime present in the soil.
A delightful instance of this fell under my own observation, as I was walking on Hampstead Heath.
Because the universe is governed by laws, and there is no credible instance on record of those laws being suspended.
Many of his bird neighbors,p. 31 for instance, liked the same things to eat that he did.
For instance, few workmen will take a holiday; they prefer a "day's out" or "play."
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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.
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