instinct
/ˈɪn.stɪŋkt/noun
instinct is spelled I-N-S-T-I-N-C-T: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 7.2 times per million words in written English, the 8,784th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, instinct means “A natural or inherent impulse or behaviour” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of instinct is instincts.
How many letters and syllables are in instinct?
| Letters | 8: I-N-S-T-I-N-C-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 7.2 times per million words; the 8,784th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is instinct?
Instinct appears 7.2 times per million words in written English, the 8,784th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce instinct?
- /ˈɪn.stɪŋkt/
Instinct has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-instinct.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of instinct
- instincts plural
- more instinct comparative
- most instinct superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does instinct mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A natural or inherent impulse or behaviour.
Many animals fear fire by instinct.
- 2
An intuitive reaction not based on rational conscious thought.
an instinct for order; to be modest by instinct
adjective
- 1
archaicImbued, charged (with something).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Instinct in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense natural or inherent impulse or behaviour:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does instinct come from?
From Latin īnstīnctus, past participle of īnstinguō (“to incite, to instigate”), from in (“in, on”) + stinguō (“to prick”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).