at the instance of

1. 經……的提議
   I did it at the instance of one of my colleagues.

   我是經我一位同事的提議才做了這件事。

for instance

1. 例如
   You can't depend on her: for instance, she arrived late yesterday.

   她靠不住；舉例說，昨天她就來遲了。

in the first instance

1. 首先
   In the first instance we had better make sure the calculations are correct.

   首先我們最好保證計算是正確的。

• at first instance
  Law  at the first court hearing concerning a case.
• at the instance of
  formal at the request or instigation of.
• for instance
  as an example.
• in the first (or second etc.) instance
  in the first (or second etc.) stage of a proceeding.