1
as in teaching
to cause to acquire knowledge or skill in some field
spent his military career instructing young pilots
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in informing
to give information to
instructed everyone in the use of the new telephone system
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in telling
to issue orders to (someone) by right of authority
the proctors instructed everyone to put their pencils down and hand in their tests
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of instructing
According to MySA, signs appeared at certain Buc-ee’s fuel pumps instructing customers using a credit or debit card to pay at the pump.
—
Marley Malenfant, Austin American Statesman, 26 Mar. 2026
That sense of normalcy largely held until Wednesday evening, when emergency alerts began chiming on phones across Riyadh, warning residents of an aerial threat and instructing them to remain indoors and away from windows.
—Manal Albarakati, semafor.com, 25 Mar. 2026
All this while the cashier holds a computer screen to my face instructing me to tap 10%, 15%, 20% or other numbers.
—Michel A. Ibrahim, Baltimore Sun, 22 Mar. 2026
Subsequent footage shows cops instructing Timberlake to complete a series of sobriety tests.
—Steven J. Horowitz, Variety, 21 Mar. 2026
In a statement to ProPublica, the CDIA highlighted that a notice instructing consumers to first dispute directly had been present in the CFPB complaint portal briefly around 2012.
—Joel Jacobs, CNN Money, 11 Mar. 2026
In a statement to ProPublica, the CDIA highlighted that a notice instructing consumers to first dispute directly had been present in the CFPB complaint portal briefly around 2012.
—Joel Jacobs, ProPublica, 10 Mar. 2026
Udvardy, 27, received a message from a phone number with a United Kingdom country code, instructing her to lose a match at a tournament one rung below the main tour.
—James Hansen, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2026
Activists are also instructing people to keep them out of sight so ICE agents don’t see them and later target them.
—Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2026
Marley Malenfant, Austin American Statesman, 26 Mar. 2026
That sense of normalcy largely held until Wednesday evening, when emergency alerts began chiming on phones across Riyadh, warning residents of an aerial threat and instructing them to remain indoors and away from windows.
—Manal Albarakati, semafor.com, 25 Mar. 2026
All this while the cashier holds a computer screen to my face instructing me to tap 10%, 15%, 20% or other numbers.
—Michel A. Ibrahim, Baltimore Sun, 22 Mar. 2026
Subsequent footage shows cops instructing Timberlake to complete a series of sobriety tests.
—Steven J. Horowitz, Variety, 21 Mar. 2026
In a statement to ProPublica, the CDIA highlighted that a notice instructing consumers to first dispute directly had been present in the CFPB complaint portal briefly around 2012.
—Joel Jacobs, CNN Money, 11 Mar. 2026
In a statement to ProPublica, the CDIA highlighted that a notice instructing consumers to first dispute directly had been present in the CFPB complaint portal briefly around 2012.
—Joel Jacobs, ProPublica, 10 Mar. 2026
Udvardy, 27, received a message from a phone number with a United Kingdom country code, instructing her to lose a match at a tournament one rung below the main tour.
—James Hansen, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2026
Activists are also instructing people to keep them out of sight so ICE agents don’t see them and later target them.
—Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for instructing
Verb
-
Johnson-Swartz was suspended from teaching at STEM School Highlands Ranch after the allegations emerged.—
Logan Smith,
CBS News,
29 Mar. 2026
-
Youth took to the streets to protest schools teaching in the Afrikaans language and the ensuing government crackdown saw hundreds killed.—
Kate Bartlett,
NPR,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The White House team is required to file a report informing the court of the status of its compliance within 21 days after the order takes effect.—
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy,
USA Today,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Thousands of Oracle workers woke Tuesday to an email from their employer informing them that their jobs had been cut with immediate effect, in what appears to one of the largest mass layoffs in the tech giant’s history.—
Hugh Cameron,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Because there’s no telling how many times this bell will ring before changes are ushered in.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
1 Apr. 2026
-
American Airlines is telling you why your flight is delayed.—
Zach Wichter,
USA Today,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
There’s at least one nonprofit, Thank God for Bitcoin, dedicated to educating Christians and churches about the digital asset.—
Bracey Harris,
NBC news,
28 Mar. 2026
-
This is a full structural inversion — not educating people about the exit, but funding it.—
Charles Edward Gehrke,
Fortune,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Raine Group and JPMorgan Chase are advising the league on the matter.—
Kurt Badenhausen,
Sportico.com,
1 Apr. 2026
-
Applicants must also complete a Small Business Development Center onboarding and advising session and demonstrate a business concept with clear future milestones.—
Claire Murphy,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
This film is about the government ordering the elderly to relocate to distant housing colonies to maximize economic productivity.—
Adam Bell
April 2,
Charlotte Observer,
2 Apr. 2026
-
The case is a rare example of a judge ordering a person’s return to the United States after being deported, said Talia Inlender, deputy director of the Center for Immigration Law and Policy at the UCLA School of Law.—
Sophie Austin,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
When caregivers there left a suicidal resident hanging by the neck from his room’s sprinkler system without giving the man immediate aid, Florida’s healthcare watchdog agency took the uncommon action of asking a judge to shut down Villa Rosa IV.—
Carol Marbin Miller,
Miami Herald,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Trump is asking the justices to uphold his Day 1 executive order eliminating birthright citizenship under a novel interpretation of the 14th Amendment and requiring parents to prove their own legal status before citizenship is granted to their children.—
Peter Charalambous,
ABC News,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
One is by Clare Harner and the other is by Henry Scott Holland, and both approach death with tenderness, but also with a commanding tone fitting the imperious Ann.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Willis, who signed a three-year, $45 million contract, could be commanding $50 million or more per season in the summer of 2028.—
Chris Perkins,
Sun Sentinel,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Instructing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/instructing. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
