grep -v broken for large pattern lists

[Rob Robason]

running the command

grep -v -F -f pattern-file search-file

with a large pattern-file (in my case 1234 patterns) fails to yield the
complement of the same command less the -v option. The result is the same
without the -F option, though _much_ slower.

The patterns I'm using are of the form:
address@hidden
My search-file has about 4900 lines of the form:
01011: address@hidden
20090704T062201    20071105T170000    20071105T173000    norecur    0
Wrap up after brainstorming Friday

A workaround would be appreciated, since I was really counting on grep -v
working properly for what I'm trying to do.
Regards,

Rob Robason
Leading Breakthroughs in Software Team Performance, Product Quality and
Customer Delight
---
925-825-1512(H)   925-348-1512(M)
address@hidden   http://rob.robason.net
Concord, CA 94518