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knee jerk

   Also found in: Medical, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.03 sec.
knee jerk
n.
A reflex contraction of the quadriceps muscle resulting in a sudden involuntary extension of the leg, produced by a sharp tap to the tendon below the patella; patellar reflex.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.knee jerk - a reflex extension of the leg resulting from a sharp tap on the patellar tendon
knee-jerk reflex, patellar reflex
inborn reflex, innate reflex, instinctive reflex, physiological reaction, reflex, reflex action, reflex response, unconditioned reflex - an automatic instinctive unlearned reaction to a stimulus
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That's a large number, and consultant Tom Devane says it's the result of what he calls knee jerk offshoring.
Knee jerk offshoring by Smith, Don R. / Rubber World
Of course, many of us are still scared, but you can't have a knee jerk reaction when you are making decisions like that," she said.
RE execs: Recession will be felt until 2004 by Misonznik, Elaine / Real Estate Weekly
He found that context was relatively unimportant, indicating that the senses are linked "neither at the lowest level [of stimulus processing and response], like a knee jerk, nor at the highest level," where imaginative or metaphoric connections might be made.
The look of music by Science News
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