Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

knee-jerky

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.08 in modern English

Syllables: knee--jerky
IPA

27

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

3

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Exhibiting or characteristic of a rash or automatic response.

Informal

Example Sentences

"Could you please resolve to control your knee-jerky impulse to give every Tom, Dick, and Harry (Kupfer?) a standing ovation?"
"Despite possessing a libertarian streak that's widening over time, Buzz doesn't get all knee-jerky in opposing new government regulation, even when politicians start messing with the Internet."
"Yet when Carol called, my immediate reaction — “How sad” or words to that effect — was so inappropriate, so knee-jerky, that I'm embarrassed to report it."

Etymology

From knee-jerk + -y.

Word Breakdown

Suffix: knee-jerk

Usage

Informal

Inflected Forms

more knee-jerky (comparative) most knee-jerky (superlative)

Synonyms

knee-jerkish

Questions

What does knee-jerky mean?: Exhibiting or characteristic of a rash or automatic response.
Where does knee-jerky come from?: From knee-jerk + -y.

How to pronounce knee-jerky

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “knee-jerky”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “knee-jerky”.
Repeat and practice — Say “knee-jerky” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.