instead of
prep. phr..prep. phr.. in place of someone or something else. You use this when you choose one thing and not another.
prep. phr.. a complex preposition used to indicate a substitution or a preference for one alternative over another.
I will have tea instead of coffee today.
We decided to walk to the cinema instead of taking the bus because the weather was so nice.
The committee opted to implement a temporary freeze on hiring instead of proceeding with the planned layoffs.
From Middle English in stede of, in stude of (“instead of”, literally “in stead of, in place of”), equivalent to in + stead + of (cf. in one's stead). Cognate with Saterland Frisian insteede, ansteede (“instead of”), West Frisian ynstee (“instead of”), Dutch instede (“instead of”), German anstatt (von) (“instead of”), Danish i stedet (“instead of”).
followed by a noun, a pronoun, or a verb ending in -ing.
contrast with 'rather than'; 'instead of' is more common when talking about a direct replacement of one noun for another.
I stayed home instead to go out.I stayed home instead of going out.the phrase 'instead of' must be followed by a noun or a gerund (-ing form), not an infinitive.