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
Loveall, who runs Blissmode Fitness, added that the tattooed freckles were not a knee-jerk decision.
—
Rachel McRady, PEOPLE, 16 Apr. 2026
As a result, the recovery in the airlines since the April 7 ceasefire may prove nothing more than a temporary, knee-jerk reaction.
—Davis Giangiulio, CNBC, 15 Apr. 2026
The response from the F1 organization and motorsport’s governing body, the FIA, has been to wait patiently for a chance to review the rules, rather than making instant knee-jerk changes.
—Luke Smith, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2026
The commitment angst plaguing Charlie and Emma over Emma’s secret seems to have a lot to do with several contemporary concerns—mixed messaging about gender roles, confusion over what constitutes a moral failing—that yield knee-jerk responses.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 8 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for knee-jerk
Rachel McRady, PEOPLE, 16 Apr. 2026
As a result, the recovery in the airlines since the April 7 ceasefire may prove nothing more than a temporary, knee-jerk reaction.
—Davis Giangiulio, CNBC, 15 Apr. 2026
The response from the F1 organization and motorsport’s governing body, the FIA, has been to wait patiently for a chance to review the rules, rather than making instant knee-jerk changes.
—Luke Smith, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2026
The commitment angst plaguing Charlie and Emma over Emma’s secret seems to have a lot to do with several contemporary concerns—mixed messaging about gender roles, confusion over what constitutes a moral failing—that yield knee-jerk responses.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 8 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for knee-jerk
Recent Examples of Synonyms for knee-jerk
Adjective
-
Yale will be trying for its first title since the Ivy League started playing a postseason tournament in 2023, and the NCAA Tournament automatic bid that goes to the champion.—
Dom Amore,
Hartford Courant,
17 May 2026
-
President Pablo Longoria, sporting director Mehdi Benatia and head coach Roberto De Zerbi were portrayed as working in lockstep, and De Zerbi’s first season at the helm had concluded with Marseille securing automatic Champions League qualification for only the third time since 2013.—
Tom Williams,
New York Times,
17 May 2026
Adjective
-
Wyle listened to the two women’s breathing and administered a reflex test on their knees.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
8 May 2026
-
That reflex delays care and erodes trust.—
Liz Koch,
STAT,
6 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Rescuing utopian idyll from dystopian reality, Koreeda determines that humanity is too fragile to forfeit its defining qualities to a mechanical species; that our only viable function in an artificial tomorrow is as the eternal caretakers of memory and imagination.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
16 May 2026
-
Does my insurance cover a mechanical breakdown?—
Christopher Elliott,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2026
Adjective
-
November 22 – December 21 A spontaneous move at home could create more freedom than expected today.—
Tarot.com,
The Orlando Sentinel,
12 May 2026
-
Sagittarius November 22 – December 21 A spontaneous move at home could create more freedom than expected today.—
Tarot.com,
New York Daily News,
12 May 2026
Adjective
-
The save looked instinctive, but technical details — the footwork, body rotation and hand selection — were what made the impossible possible.—
Matt Pyzdrowski,
New York Times,
10 May 2026
-
Her block on Hof's layup in the final seconds was the kind of athletic, instinctive play that changes games and defines seasons.—
Christopher Harris,
CBS News,
10 May 2026
Adjective
-
Robots learn cloth folding Alongside the digital twin technology, FANUC demonstrated a dual-arm robotic system that learns to fold T-shirts using NVIDIA’s Isaac GR00T N robot foundation model.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
15 May 2026
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The robotic Tianzhou 10 cargo ship lifted off atop a Long March 7 rocket from the Wenchang Space Launch Site on China’s Hainan Island on Sunday.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
15 May 2026
Adjective
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The Sun were consistently among the WNBA’s top-performing franchises on and off the court before the league’s sudden exponential growth.—
Emily Adams,
Hartford Courant,
13 May 2026
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Kathy Roth-Douquet, CEO of Blue Star Families, said as a result of these sudden deployments, some spouses have had to cut back on their work hours or quit their jobs to hold down the home front.—
Juliana Kim,
NPR,
13 May 2026
Adjective
-
Eva Petzel, who will be an inspector working in Crown Point on election day, worked with mechanic Doug Kiser on a practice tutorial at the Lake County Government Complex on Saturday.—
Deborah Laverty,
Chicago Tribune,
4 May 2026
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Voters will decide in November on whether the union leader and mechanic stays in the seat ahead of the 2027 legislative session.—
Lina Ruiz
May 1,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
1 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Knee-jerk.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/knee-jerk. Accessed 19 May. 2026.
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