本能 běnnéng instinct
How to remember 本能: 本 source + 能 able to = instinct.
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How it is used
- Instinct - an innate, unlearned drive: 求生本能 (qiúshēng běnnéng) survival instinct, 本能反应 (běnnéng fǎnyìng) an instinctive reaction.
- Refers to inborn biological/psychological impulses; can be adverbial (本能地躲开 dodge instinctively).
- Contrast 直觉 (zhíjué, intuition); 本能 is deeper, biological, shared across a species.