knee-jerk reaction
a quick, automatic reaction
TRANSLATION
knee-jerk reaction = eine reflexartige Reaktion --- GOOGLE INDEX knee-jerk reaction: approximately 2,000,000 Google hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
Ask the public about the honesty of MPs and the typical KNEE-JERK REACTION is that you cannot believe a word a politician says.
(BBC News)
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Oil market's KNEE-JERK REACTION to Libya
(CNN headline)
(BBC News)
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Oil market's KNEE-JERK REACTION to Libya
(CNN headline)
Did you
know?
knee-jerk reaction
noun phrase
- a quick reaction that does not allow you time to consider something carefully
(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
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The term knee-jerk was originally coined in 1877 by British physician Sir Michael Foster and was described in his Textbook of Physiology: "Striking the tendon below the patella gives rise to a sudden extension of the leg, known as the knee-jerk." Doctors still take the hammer to patient's knees today to determine if the leg suddenly rises and comes to rest again. The absence or decrease of this reaction is called Westphal's sign and is named after German neurologist Carl Friedrich Otto Westphal.
The expression began to be used in a figurative sense in the early 20th century to describe a very quick reaction or response to something. There are not many body parts that can't be used in idioms. Here are a few additional examples:
toe the line = to do what is expected or in line with the rules (She makes her children really toe the line)
shake a leg = to hurry, to move faster (Shake a leg! The train is leaving soon!)
put best foot forward = to make a good impression (Good luck with the job interview and don't forget to put your best foot forward)
all fingers and thumbs = to be awkward or clumsy (Can you hammer this nail into the wall for me? I seem to be all fingers and thumbs today.)
get your arm around = to feel like you have a good understanding of something (Get your arm around the issue before making a decision)
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SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"Knee-jerk reactions are common on Wall Street, so analyze everything carefully before changing your investment portfolio."
noun phrase
- a quick reaction that does not allow you time to consider something carefully
(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
---
The term knee-jerk was originally coined in 1877 by British physician Sir Michael Foster and was described in his Textbook of Physiology: "Striking the tendon below the patella gives rise to a sudden extension of the leg, known as the knee-jerk." Doctors still take the hammer to patient's knees today to determine if the leg suddenly rises and comes to rest again. The absence or decrease of this reaction is called Westphal's sign and is named after German neurologist Carl Friedrich Otto Westphal.
The expression began to be used in a figurative sense in the early 20th century to describe a very quick reaction or response to something. There are not many body parts that can't be used in idioms. Here are a few additional examples:
toe the line = to do what is expected or in line with the rules (She makes her children really toe the line)
shake a leg = to hurry, to move faster (Shake a leg! The train is leaving soon!)
put best foot forward = to make a good impression (Good luck with the job interview and don't forget to put your best foot forward)
all fingers and thumbs = to be awkward or clumsy (Can you hammer this nail into the wall for me? I seem to be all fingers and thumbs today.)
get your arm around = to feel like you have a good understanding of something (Get your arm around the issue before making a decision)
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"Knee-jerk reactions are common on Wall Street, so analyze everything carefully before changing your investment portfolio."
