instinct

«instinct» in Mova's school dictionary: A natural way of behaving that an animal or person is… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 4 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

noun (an instinct, instincts; instinct — uncountable)

meaning for a pupil

1) A natural way of behaving that an animal or person is born with and does not need to learn (Birds build nests by instinct). tree →

2) A strong feeling or sense about what is true or what to do, without thinking it through (trust your instinct). tree →

3) A natural ability or talent (an instinct for music). tree →

sense in the lessons

In science, instinct explains animal behaviour: spiders spin webs, birds migrate, baby turtles head to the sea, babies grasp fingers — all without being taught. Learned behaviour is the opposite. In safety lessons: if something or someone feels wrong (the «uh-oh» feeling), trust your instinct, get away and tell a trusted adult. Phrases: by instinct, survival instinct, gut instinct, trust your instincts, instinctive.

examples

• Spiders spin webs by instinct. tree →
• Baby turtles go towards the sea by instinct. tree →
• My instinct told me something was wrong, so I left. tree →
• Trust your instincts if a stranger makes you feel uncomfortable. tree →
• A cat's instinct is to chase things that move. tree →
• She has a good instinct for which questions to ask. tree →
• Survival instinct made the deer run. tree →
• In his excitement he had forgotten the river, and it was not till the cold water touched his feet that he stood still by instinct. tree →

note

Countable and uncountable: «by instinct» or «her instincts». Adjective: instinctive. Science: instinct (born with) vs learned behaviour (learned from experience or being taught).

In the corpora

• Many animal behaviours are instincts inherited from wild ancestors.
• Hunting animals have a strong instinct to chase things that run away.
• Pet cats still have a hunting instinct even when they are well fed.
• Herding dogs like sheepdogs may nip at running children's heels from instinct; the owner should call the dog off.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «instinct» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.