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knee-jerk

adj

Etymology

From knee + jerk, First attested c. 1876, and derived from a figurative sense of the patellar reflex.

  1. inherited from ġearcian — “to prepare, make ready, procure, furnish, supply”
  2. derived from ġearc
  3. derived from yerkid — “tightly pulled”
  4. inherited from yerk
  5. compounded as knee-jerk — “knee + jerk”

Definitions

  1. Unthinking, not carefully considered, (nearly) automatic, spontaneous, easily predictable.

    • He gave a knee-jerk response.
    • There were knee-jerk demands from trade unions for immediate withdrawal of all HSTs; these were wrong-headed.
    • The knee-jerk reaction is further evidence of just how panicked investors are about the stability of the global financial system after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank last week.

  2. A sudden reflexive movement of the leg below the knee, as a reaction to a tap to the…

    A sudden reflexive movement of the leg below the knee, as a reaction to a tap to the tendon just below the patella (kneecap).

The neighborhood

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sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA