Tendency vs Instinct - What's the difference?
tendency | instinct |
A likelihood of behaving in a particular way or going in a particular direction; a tending toward.
An organised unit or faction within a larger political organisation.
A natural or inherent impulse or behaviour.
* Shakespeare
* {{quote-book
, year=1921
, title=
, author=Bertrand Russell
, passage=In spite of these qualifications, the broad distinction between instinct and habit is undeniable. To take extreme cases, every animal at birth can take food by instinct, before it has had opportunity to learn; on the other hand, no one can ride a bicycle by instinct, though, after learning, the necessary movements become just as automatic as if they were instinctive.}}
An intuitive reaction not based on rational conscious thought.
(archaic) Imbued, charged ((with) something).
* Milton
* Brougham
* 1928 , (HP Lovecraft), ‘The Call of Cthulhu’:
As nouns the difference between tendency and instinct
is that tendency is a likelihood of behaving in a particular way or going in a particular direction; a tending toward while instinct is a natural or inherent impulse or behaviour.As an adjective instinct is
(archaic) imbued, charged ((with) something).tendency
English
Noun
(tendencies)- Denim has a tendency to fade.
- a militant tendency
Derived terms
* multitendencySynonyms
* inclination * disposition * propensity * penchant * trendinstinct
English
(wikipedia instinct)Noun
- Many animals fear fire by instinct .
- By a divine instinct , men's minds mistrust / Ensuing dangers.
- an instinct''' for order; to be modest by '''instinct
- Debbie's instinct was to distrust John.
Derived terms
* instinctively * instinctiveAdjective
(en adjective)- The chariot of paternal deity / Itself instinct with spirit, but convoyed / By four cherubic shapes.
- a noble performance, instinct with sound principle
- This thing, which seemed instinct with a fearsome and unnatural malignancy, was of a somewhat bloated corpulence, and squatted evilly on a rectangular block or pedestal covered with undecipherable characters.