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instruct

verb

Simple meaning

To teach someone or tell them what to do.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

ihnstruhkt

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ɪnstˈɹʌkt

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

  1. transitive

    To tell (someone) what they must or should do.

  2. Give instructions or directions for some task

    “She instructed the students to work on their pronunciation.”

  3. transitive

    To teach by giving instructions.

  4. transitive

    To give (one's own lawyer) legal instructions as to how they should act in relation to a particular issue; thereby formally appointing them as one's own legal representative in relation to it.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
C1 · Advanced
Frequency
Moderately Common
Typical Use
Neutral / general English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: To tell (someone) what they must or should do.

Used this way, instruct is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use instruct

  • “She instructed the students to work on their pronunciation.”verb

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

instruct patientinstruct client

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

  • instructornounPerson or profession

    A person whose occupation is teaching.

  • instructiveadjectiveDerived adjective

    Serving to instruct or enlighten or inform.

Related words

Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.

  • drill instructornounRelated term

    A noncommissioned officer who instructs recruits in military marching and discipline.

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.