instead
The word “instead” is an adverb. It means “in place of” or “this, not that.”
This word is also part of the prepositional phrase, “instead of.”
When "instead" is an adverb, it refers to a substitution.
- Walter doesn’t want tea. Instead, he’s going to have coffee. (The word “instead” modifies the verb “have.”)
- Jenny didn’t have toast for breakfast. She had cereal instead.
- We decided not to move to California. We moved to North Dakota instead.
- You can’t talk to Ursula right now because she’s on the phone. Instead, you can talk to her assistant.
- Rather than spend money at a fast food place, Rachel prefers healthier options instead.
- If they don’t travel by plane, what should they do instead?
- To avoid long lines in the afternoon, try shopping in the morning instead.
Notice that “instead” can go at the beginning or at the end of a sentence.
- At first, they considered traveling by plane but took a train instead.
"Instead of" is a two-word preposition.
- Instead of eggs and toast for breakfast, Jenny had cereal.
- Instead of going to the beach, they went for a hike in the woods.
- I like riding my bike to work instead of driving there.
- You can order your books online instead of going to a store to get them.
- Instead of arguing, we should try to solve our problems through compromise.
- Instead of shopping in the afternoon, you should try shopping early in the morning because it’s not as busy at that time.
- I want this instead of that.
- Most cameras nowadays use an SD card in place of film for taking pictures.
An SD card is a Secure Digital card that records and stores images.