Knee-jerk
[nee-jurk] /ˈniˌdʒɜrk/
adjective
1.
of or relating to a knee-jerk.
2.
Informal. reacting according to a certain habitual manner; unthinking:
a knee-jerk liberal.
noun
1.
a reflex extension of the leg, caused by contraction of the quadriceps, resulting from a sharp tap on the patellar tendon; patellar reflex.
noun
1.
(physiol) Also called patellar reflex. an outward reflex kick of the lower leg caused by a sharp tap on the quadriceps tendon just below the patella
modifier
2.
made or occurring as a predictable and automatic response, without thought: kneejerk support
n.
patellar reflex, neurological phenomenon discovered and named 1876; the figurative use appeared soon after the phrase was coined.
knee jerk n.
See patellar reflex.
modifier
: one more gesture to the knee-jerk hawks in the Congress/ Yet McDonald is no mere knee-jerk critic of the evangelicals
noun
verb
: We need less kneejerking on both sides in these arguments about the environment (1980s+)
[fr the patellar reflex, described as knee jerk by 1876]
Read Also:
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