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Definition of instinct : 1. A natural aptitude or knack; a predilection; as, an instinct for order; to be modest by instinct.
2. Natural inward impulse; unconscious, involuntary, or unreasoning prompting to any mode of action, whether bodily, or mental, without a distinct apprehension of the end or object to be accomplished.
3. Specif., the natural, unreasoning, impulse by which an animal is guided to the performance of any action, without of improvement in the method.
4. To impress, as an animating power, or instinct.
5. Urged or stimulated from within; naturally moved or impelled; imbued; animated; alive; quick; as, birds instinct with life.

Synonyms:

sense, turn, inherent aptitude, thought, spirit, head, reason, intellect, genius, brain, faculty, understanding, aptness, consciousness, sixth sense, intuitiveness, flair, penetration, approach, mind, intelligence, talent, soul

fixed ways, trait, conventionality, lifestyle, leaning, tendency, familiarity, custom, temperament, acclimation, rut, mannerism, routine, addiction, wont, treadmill, second nature, way of life, regularity, disposition, daily grind, tradition, habit

aptitude, natural tendency, drive, impulse, feel, gift, proclivity, inclination, hunch, knack, ability, automatic response, bent

intuition, shrewdness, artfulness, canniness, foresight, astuteness, insight, cunning, cleverness, sophistry, craftiness, trickiness, wiliness, slyness

Usage examples:

• She was an instinct. - "Hilda Lessways", Arnold Bennett.
• I do a lot of things by instinct. - "The Grain Of Dust A Novel", David Graham Phillips.
• Thus even in his desire to save Jesus, his motive was not pure, it was rather an instinct of self- preservation than a sense of justice. - "The Gospel According to St. Mark", G. A. Chadwick.