as in reflex
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Recent Examples of Pavlovian
When the needle finally drops, the effect is Pavlovian.
—
Alison Herman, Variety, 25 July 2025
The result is a political Pavlovian response where even modest tax reforms come with a side of millionaire exodus think-pieces.
—Andrew Leahey, Forbes.com, 20 July 2025
The theme is the same Pavlovian ring tone as its dating show predecessor, but off-kilter — the Wario to Love Island’s Mario.
—Olivia Crandall, Vulture, 13 July 2025
The response was Pavlovian, the practice ingrained in her by her own mother, who spent much of her time pacifying her insecure and whiny husband.
—Literary Hub, 9 July 2025
George Lucas’ 1977 space saga is pure Pavlovian pop rush and knows how to modernize creaky B-movie genre elements for maximum audience reaction.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 20 June 2025
Drivers build lives around parking: the work shifts altered to align with the alternate-side-rotation hours, the keys always in the pocket, the Pavlovian alertness at the chirp of an unlocking car.
—Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 5 May 2025
After a decade, my body reacts in a Pavlovian way to its stimuli, the scroll of torsos, the dopamine of a red dot notification, a three-toned beep that perks you up in your chair.
—Mathew Rodriguez, Them, 11 Feb. 2025
Alison Herman, Variety, 25 July 2025
The result is a political Pavlovian response where even modest tax reforms come with a side of millionaire exodus think-pieces.
—Andrew Leahey, Forbes.com, 20 July 2025
The theme is the same Pavlovian ring tone as its dating show predecessor, but off-kilter — the Wario to Love Island’s Mario.
—Olivia Crandall, Vulture, 13 July 2025
The response was Pavlovian, the practice ingrained in her by her own mother, who spent much of her time pacifying her insecure and whiny husband.
—Literary Hub, 9 July 2025
George Lucas’ 1977 space saga is pure Pavlovian pop rush and knows how to modernize creaky B-movie genre elements for maximum audience reaction.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 20 June 2025
Drivers build lives around parking: the work shifts altered to align with the alternate-side-rotation hours, the keys always in the pocket, the Pavlovian alertness at the chirp of an unlocking car.
—Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 5 May 2025
After a decade, my body reacts in a Pavlovian way to its stimuli, the scroll of torsos, the dopamine of a red dot notification, a three-toned beep that perks you up in your chair.
—Mathew Rodriguez, Them, 11 Feb. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for Pavlovian
Adjective
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After your baby is born progesterone (which inhibits breastmilk production) drops and prolactin, which controls milk volume, and oxytocin, which triggers the let-down reflex increases, explains Nadine Rosenblum, the perinatal lactation program coordinator at The Johns Hopkins Hospital.—
Hannah Silverman,
Parents,
16 Feb. 2026
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This local reflex system reduces damage, improves safety and makes interactions feel more natural.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
12 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
One of her favorite things to do during these sleep sojourns is pose personal, even existential questions — probing the mysterious terrain of her own subconscious mind.—
Carolyn Y. Johnson,
Washington Post,
17 Feb. 2026
-
On view through March 29, the exhibition traces Lynch’s lifelong dialogue between material experimentation and subconscious imagery, including a series of photographs taken in Berlin in 1999.—
Melinda Sheckells,
HollywoodReporter,
14 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Emerging from a stormy period in Sutkowski’s life, III’s blend of emo, slowcore, and folk works great as a cathartic emotional exercise thanks to its visceral themes and weighty sound, even though the record seldom adds anything new to an ever-evolving emo canon.—
Billie Bugara,
Pitchfork,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Unlike body composition metrics, BMI obscures the true extent of metabolic dysfunction and cannot distinguish between muscle and fat — or between superficial fat and the visceral fat that drives diabetes, heart disease and other chronic conditions.—
Bret Scher,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
As the protagonist Ben in Night of the Living Dead (1968), Duane Jones unveiled a distinct facet of pre-conditioned Black martyrdom.—
Malik Peay,
Rolling Stone,
7 Feb. 2023
-
The new formula is infused with a luscious blend of flower oils so that lashes feel conditioned and supple to the touch.—
Daisy Maldonado,
SELF,
13 Sep. 2022
Adjective
-
Those in the public eye are not immune to society’s subliminal, and now not-so-subliminal, messaging about bodies.—
Leah Asmelash,
CNN Money,
6 Dec. 2025
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The popularity of self-checkout, then, could suggest a subliminal shift in some shoppers’ priorities—an aversion to waiting might be outweighed these days by a reluctance to engage with other people.—
Valerie Trapp,
The Atlantic,
4 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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The new findings are confounding scientists’ expectations, raising questions about how exactly molecules can encounter their reactive partners in a teeming, crowded space — and therefore how cells can possibly function.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
18 Feb. 2026
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Social change untethered from moral grounding often becomes reactive and short-lived.—
Irfan Sarwar,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Firefighters pulled the unconscious victim from his apartment and medics rushed him to New York-Presbyterian Hospital Queens but he could not be saved, police said.—
Rocco Parascandola,
New York Daily News,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Destiny and Shawn Jackson said the gas left their baby unconscious and foaming at the mouth, and that strangers and local law enforcement helped them while the feds stood in the way.—
WCCO Staff,
CBS News,
16 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Each employee gets their own retirement account, with automatic contributions made from their paychecks.—
Jeanne Sahadi,
CNN Money,
16 Feb. 2026
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The transistor acts like an automatic switch.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
15 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pavlovian.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/Pavlovian. Accessed 23 Feb. 2026.
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