different between instinct vs constitution

English

Etymology

From Latin ?nstinctus, past participle of ?nstingu? (“to incite, to instigate”), from in (“in, on”) + stingu? (“to prick”). This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??n.st??kt/

Noun

instinct (countable and uncountable, plural instincts)

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

   Debbie's instinct was to distrust John.

Derived terms

• instinctively
• instinctive

Translations

Adjective

instinct (comparative more instinct, superlative most instinct)

1. (archaic) Imbued, charged (with something).
   • 1838, Henry Brougham, Historical Sketches of Statesmen Who Flourished in the Time of George III

     a noble performance, instinct with sound principle

   • 1857, Charlotte Brontë, The Professor

     Her eyes, whose colour I had not at first known, so dim were they with repressed tears, so shadowed with ceaseless dejection, now, lit by a ray of the sunshine that cheered her heart, revealed irids of bright hazel – irids large and full, screened with long lashes; and pupils instinct with fire.

   • 1928, HP Lovecraft, ‘The Call of Cthulhu’:

     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.

Further reading

• instinct in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• instinct in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from French instinct, from Latin ?nstinctus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?n?st??(k)t/
• Hyphenation: in?stinct
• Rhymes: -??kt

Noun

instinct n (plural instincten)

1. instinct (innate response, impulse or behaviour)

Derived terms

• instinctief
• instinctmatig
• moederinstinct
• vaderinstinct

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin ?nstinctus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??s.t??/

Noun

instinct m (plural instincts)

1. instinct
2. gut feeling

Related terms

• instinctif

Further reading

• “instinct” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Romanian

Etymology

From French instinct

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /in?stinkt/

Noun

instinct n (plural instincte)

1. instinct

Declension

Related terms

• instinctiv

English

Etymology

From Middle English constitucioun, constitucion (“edict, law, ordinance, regulation, rule, statute; body of laws or rules, or customs; body of fundamental principles; principle or rule (of science); creation”) from Old French constitucion (modern French constitution), a learned borrowing from Latin c?nstit?ti?, c?nstit?ti?nem (“character, constitution, disposition, nature; definition; point in dispute; order, regulation; arrangement, system”), from c?nstitu? (“to establish, set up; to confirm; to decide, resolve”) (from con- (prefix indicating a being or bringing together of several objects) + statu? (“to set up, station; to establish; to determine, fix”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *steh?- (“to stand (up)”))) + -ti? (suffix forming nouns relating to actions or the results of actions), -ti?nem (accusative singular of -ti?).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?k?nst??tju??(?)n/, /-?t?u?-/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?k?nst??tu?(?)n/
• Hyphenation: con?sti?tu?tion

Noun

constitution (plural constitutions)

1. The act, or process of setting something up, or establishing something; the composition or structure of such a thing; its makeup.

   Synonyms: configuration, form; see also Thesaurus:composition

   • 1876, John Herschel, Outlines of Astronomy

     the physical constitution of the sun

2. (government) The formal or informal system of primary principles and laws that regulates a government or other institutions.
3. (law) A legal document describing such a formal system.
4. A person's physical makeup or temperament, especially in respect of robustness.
   • 1828, Joseph Story, Appeal to the Republic

     Our constitutions have never been enfeebled by the vices or luxuries of the old world.
5. (dated) The general health of a person.

Derived terms

• constitutional
• metaconstitution

Related terms

• constitute
• constituent
• constituency
• constitutive

Translations

References

Further reading

• constitution on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• constitution (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

French

Etymology

From Old French constitucion, from Latin c?nstit?ti?, c?nstit?ti?nem. Morphologically, from constituer +? -tion.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /k??s.ti.ty.sj??/
• Rhymes: -??
• Homophone: constitutions

Noun

constitution f (plural constitutions)

1. constitution

Further reading

• “constitution” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Norman

Etymology

From Latin c?nstit?ti?, c?nstit?ti?nem.

Pronunciation

Noun

constitution f (plural constitutions)

1. (Jersey) constitution