Instinct - Definitions from Dictionary.com

14 results for: Instinct

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

in·stinct1

Audio Help [in-stingkt] Pronunciation Key

–noun

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.

[Origin: 1375–1425; late ME < L instinctus prompting, instigation, enthusiasm, equiv. to *insting(uere) (in- in-² + *sting(u)ere presumably, to prick; see distinct) + -tus suffix of v. action

]

—Synonyms 3. genius, knack, faculty, talent.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Instinct

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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

in·stinct2

Audio Help [in-stingkt] Pronunciation Key

–adjective

1.	filled or infused with some animating principle (usually fol. by with): instinct with life.

2.	Obsolete. animated by some inner force.

[Origin: 1530–40; < L instinctus excited, roused, inspired, ptp. of *insting(u)ere; see instinct¹

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

in·stinct Audio Help (ĭn'stĭngkt') Pronunciation Key
n.

An inborn pattern of behavior that is characteristic of a species and is often a response to specific environmental stimuli: the spawning instinct in salmon; altruistic instincts in social animals.
A powerful motivation or impulse.
An innate capability or aptitude: an instinct for tact and diplomacy.

adj. (ĭn-stĭngkt')

Deeply filled or imbued: words instinct with love.
Obsolete Impelled from within.

[Middle English, from Latin īnstīnctus, impulse, from past participle of īnstinguere, to incite : in-, intensive pref.; see in-² + stinguere, to prick; see steig- in Indo-European roots.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
instinct

1412, "a prompting," from L. instinctus "instigation, impulse," pp. of instinguere "to incite, impel," from in- "on" + stinguere "prick, goad" (see instigation). Sense of "innate tendency" is first recorded 1568, from notion of "natural prompting."

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

instinct
adjective
1.	(followed by 'with')deeply filled or permeated; "imbued with the spirit of the Reformation"; "words instinct with love"; "it is replete with misery"
noun
1.	inborn pattern of behavior often responsive to specific stimuli; "the spawning instinct in salmon"; "altruistic instincts in social animals"

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
instinct [ˈinstiŋkt] noun

a natural tendency to behave or react in a particular way, without thinking and without having been taught
Example: As winter approaches, swallows fly south from Britain by instinct; He has an instinct for saying the right thing.

Arabic:	غَريزَه
Chinese (Simplified):	本能
Chinese (Traditional):	本能
Czech:	pud, instinkt
Danish:	instinkt
Dutch:	instinkt
Estonian:	vaist
Finnish:	vaisto
French:	instinct
German:	der Instinkt
Greek:	ένστικτο, έμφυτη ικανότητα
Hungarian:	ösztön
Icelandic:	eðlishvöt, *-ávísun
Indonesian:	naluri, insting
Italian:	istinto

Japanese:	本能
Korean:	본능, 천성
Latvian:	instinkts
Lithuanian:	instinktas
Norwegian:	instinkt
Polish:	instynkt
Portuguese (Brazil):	instinto
Portuguese (Portugal):	instinto
Romanian:	instinct
Russian:	инстинкт
Slovak:	inštinkt
Slovenian:	nagon
Spanish:	instinto
Swedish:	instinkt
Turkish:	içgüdü

See also: instinctive

The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

instinct Audio Help (ĭn'stĭngkt') Pronunciation Key
An inherited tendency of an organism to behave in a certain way, usually in reaction to its environment and for the purpose of fulfilling a specific need. The development and performance of instinctive behavior does not depend upon the specific details of an individual's learning experiences. Instead, instinctive behavior develops in the same way for all individuals of the same species or of the same sex of a species. For example, birds will build the form of nest typical of their species although they may never have seen such a nest being built before. Some butterfly species undertake long migrations to wintering grounds that they have never seen. Behavior in animals often reflects the influence of a combination of instinct and learning. The basic song pattern of many bird species is inherited, but it is often refined by learning from other members of the species. Dogs that naturally seek to gather animals such as sheep or cattle into a group are said to have a herding instinct, but the effective use of this instinct by the dog also requires learning on the dog's part. Instinct, as opposed to reflex, is usually used of inherited behavior patterns that are more complex or sometimes involve a degree of interaction with learning processes.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

American Heritage New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition - Cite This Source - Share This
instinct

Behavior that is not learned but passed between generations by heredity.

[Chapter:] Life Sciences

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

instinct in·stinct (ĭn'stĭngkt')
n.

An inborn pattern of behavior that is characteristic of a species and is often a response to specific environmental stimuli.
A powerful motivation or impulse.

in·stinc'tive or in·stinc'tu·al (ĭn-stĭngk'ch&oomacr;-əl) adj.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Main Entry: in·stinct
Pronunciation: 'in-"sti[ng](k)t
Function: noun
1 : a largely inheritable and unalterable tendency of an organism to makea complex and specific response to environmental stimuli without involving reason
2 : behavior that is mediated by reactions below the conscious level

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Instinct

In*stinct"\, a. [L. instinctus, p. p. of instinguere to instigate, incite; cf. instigare to instigate. Cf. Instigate, Distinguish.] Urged or stimulated from within; naturally moved or impelled; imbued; animated; alive; quick; as, birds instinct with life.

The chariot of paternal deity . . . Itself instinct with spirit, but convoyed By four cherubic shapes. --Milton.

A noble performance, instinct with sound principle. --Brougham.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Instinct

In"stinct\, n. [L. instinctus instigation, impulse, fr. instinguere to instigate: cf. F. instinct. See Instinct, a.]

1. Natural inward impulse; unconscious, involuntary, or unreasoning prompting to any mode of action, whether bodily, or mental, without a distinct apprehension of the end or object to be accomplished.

An instinct is a propensity prior to experience, and independent of instructions. --Paley.

An instinct is a blind tendency to some mode of action, independent of any consideration, on the part of the agent, of the end to which the action leads. --Whately.

An instinct is an agent which performs blindly and ignorantly a work of intelligence and knowledge. --Sir W. Hamilton.

By a divine instinct, men's minds mistrust Ensuing dangers. --Shak.

2. (Zo["o]l.) Specif., the natural, unreasoning, impulse by which an animal is guided to the performance of any action, without of improvement in the method.

The resemblance between what originally was a habit, and an instinct becomes so close as not to be distinguished. --Darwin.

3. A natural aptitude or knack; a predilection; as, an instinct for order; to be modest by instinct.