• n. 本能，直覺；天性
• adj. 充滿著的

in-,進入，使，-stinct,刺，詞源同stick,distinct.其原義為刺激，推動，后引申詞義天生的能力，本能，天性。

instinct

instinct: [15] The etymological notion underlying instinct (and also the closely related instigate) is of ‘goading onwards with a pointed stick’. Its ultimate source is Latin instinguere ‘urge onwards, incite’, a compound verb formed from the prefix in- ‘on’ and stinguere ‘prick, goad’. Source also of English distinct and extinct, this goes back to the same root, *stig-, as produced English stick and Latin stīgāre ‘prick, goad’, the ancestor of English instigate [16].

The noun derived from it, instinctus, originally meant ‘incitement, instigation’, but it eventually moved on to ‘impulse’, the sense it had when English acquired it. The more specialized ‘innate impulse’ developed in the mid 16th century.
=> distinct, extinct, instigate, stick

instinct (n.)

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.

1. His instinct would be to seek a new accommodation with the nationalists.

他本能的反應會是尋求與民族主義者取得新的和解。

來自柯林斯例句

2. She hadn't followed her instinct and because of this Frank was dead.

她沒有聽從自己心里的話，弗蘭克因此死了。

來自柯林斯例句

3. Farmers are increasingly losing touch with their instinct for managing the land.

農民正在逐漸丟失經營土地的本領。

來自柯林斯例句

4. She has an unerring instinct for people's weak spots.

她能準確地把握他人的弱點。

來自柯林斯例句

5. "Basic Instinct" catapulted her to top status among Hollywood's glamour goddesses.

《本能》使她躍至一線，成功躋身好萊塢耀眼的女明星之列。

來自柯林斯例句