as in automatic
done instantly and without conscious thought or decision
a colleague known for her knee-jerk rejection of any proposal that she didn't originate
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Recent Examples of knee-jerk
By late season two, her knee-jerk reaction to having guests begins to feel almost pathological, a disease that can only be cured by launching a caviar line and holding space for that on the kitchen island instead.
—
Kinsey Jasnoch, Vulture, 18 Dec. 2024
Glinda’s hair flips and knee-jerk narcissism lack the necessary conviction.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 10 Dec. 2024
Listen to signals, but don't succumb to knee-jerk reactions.
—Agur Jõgi, Forbes, 21 Nov. 2024
A lot of this is knee-jerk excuse-making, and the pendulum will swing back somewhat over the course of Trump’s second term.
—Bill Goodykoontz, USA TODAY, 12 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for knee-jerk 
Kinsey Jasnoch, Vulture, 18 Dec. 2024
Glinda’s hair flips and knee-jerk narcissism lack the necessary conviction.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 10 Dec. 2024
Listen to signals, but don't succumb to knee-jerk reactions.
—Agur Jõgi, Forbes, 21 Nov. 2024
A lot of this is knee-jerk excuse-making, and the pendulum will swing back somewhat over the course of Trump’s second term.
—Bill Goodykoontz, USA TODAY, 12 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for knee-jerk
Recent Examples of Synonyms for knee-jerk
Adjective
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Health inspectors said an automatic dishwasher was out of service and the staff had not set up a manual sanitizing station.—
Camila Pedrosa,
Sacramento Bee,
24 Jan. 2025
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Tedesco’s side won just one of their six matches in League A Group 2, finishing nine points behind France and Italy while avoiding automatic relegation to League B by finishing above Israel on goal difference.—
Guillermo Rai,
The Athletic,
24 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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When the reflex actions are prevented, those muscle movements that ultimately cause the quick spoilage don’t occur.—
Simon Mainwaring,
Forbes,
13 Jan. 2025
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Basal tears keep the eye moist, while reflex tears are meant to protect the eye from irritants like dust.—
Jeremy Engle,
New York Times,
25 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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No racing or mechanical experience is required; only creativity and a desire to put the pedal to the floor!—
AvidXchange Music Factory,
Charlotte Observer,
22 Jan. 2025
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Seed oils are obtained either through mechanical or chemical extraction.—
Jillian Kubala,
Health,
22 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Read More: These Are the Best Ways to Improve Your Memory In addition, bus drivers, aircraft pilots, and ship captains—the jobs with less spontaneous decision-making—had Alzheimer’s death rates typical of the rest of the population.—
Christopher M. Worsham,
TIME,
14 Jan. 2025
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My creative process is instinctive and spontaneous.—
Stephan Rabimov,
Forbes,
14 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Each guest is invited to discover the essences through an instinctive exploration guided by a specialist or Cheloni himself, aimed at choosing favorite notes and creating a bespoke fragrance.—
Sandra Salibian,
WWD,
14 Jan. 2025
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My creative process is instinctive and spontaneous.—
Stephan Rabimov,
Forbes,
14 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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To do that, someone would likely need to create a type of digital skin that would attach to a robotic limb and rapidly collect and interpret data about the world.—
Mack DeGeurin,
Popular Science,
16 Jan. 2025
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Asked what would happen to Gateway if SLS is cancelled, Daniel Neuenschwander, ESA's director of human and robotic exploration, responded that the cancellation would only impact ESA if no other launcher were able to transport Orion and the ESM to lunar orbit.—
Andrew Jones,
Space.com,
16 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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But, an approach solely focused on sudden movements could lead to so many false triggers, users would likely find the option more annoying than beneficial—and that’s where machine learning, a segment of AI focused on pattern recognition, comes into play.—
Reece Rogers,
WIRED,
25 Jan. 2025
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The coastal city of Rancho Palos Verdes suffered sudden movement from a decades-old complex of slow-moving landslides last fall, twisting roads and putting multimillion-dollar homes on the brink of destruction.—
Karina Tsui,
CNN,
24 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Harroun installed it with a bracket above the dashboard rather than have a mechanic ride in the race with him, as was the custom of the day.—
George Petras,
USA TODAY,
24 May 2024
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When Part 4 was released in August 2023, mechanic Bennie was losing his garage.—
Cheryl V. Jackson,
The Indianapolis Star,
17 Apr. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near knee-jerk
Cite this Entry
“Knee-jerk.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/knee-jerk. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
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