instead

adverb
ĭn-stěd'

In the place of something (usually mentioned earlier); as a substitute or alternative.

Example

“I was going to go shopping, but I went dancing instead.”

Synonyms

or else

Related words

instead of

Example sentences

“Why is there something instead of nothing?”
Tatoeba · shekitten · CC0
“That will encourage radish leaf growth instead of root development.”
Tatoeba · Cangarejo · CC0

Word history

From Middle English "ine" (in).

Where this comes from

This definition is adapted from “instead” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; example sentences are from Tatoeba, credited to their authors above; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.