complement

¹com·ple·ment

noun \ˈkäm-plə-mənt\

Definition of COMPLEMENT

1

a : something that fills up, completes, or makes perfect

b : the quantity, number, or assortment required to make a thing complete <the usual complement of eyes and ears — Francis Parkman>; especially : the whole force or personnel of a ship

c : one of two mutually completing parts : counterpart

2

a : the angle or arc that when added to a given angle or arc equals a right angle in measure

b : the set of all elements that do not belong to a given set and are contained in a particular mathematical set containing the given set

c : a number that when added to another number of the same sign yields zero if the significant digit farthest to the left is discarded —used especially in assembly language programming

3

: the musical interval required with a given interval to complete the octave

4

: an added word or expression by which a predication is made complete (as president in “they elected him president” and beautiful in “he thought her beautiful”)

5

: the thermolabile group of proteins in normal blood serum and plasma that in combination with antibodies causes the destruction especially of particulate antigens (as bacteria and foreign blood corpuscles)

Examples of COMPLEMENT

1. The scarf is a perfect complement to her outfit.
2. a full complement of farm animals
3. her usual complement of attendants
4. a ship's complement of officers
5. “President” in “they elected her president” and “to work” in “he wants to work” are different kinds of complements.
6. With the loss of just one American and four Japanese carriers, including their complements of aircraft and many of their superbly trained fliers … , Midway … put the Japanese navy at a disadvantage from which it never recovered. —David M. Kennedy, Atlantic, March 1999
7. Exact observation of the outer world was the complement to a literal reading of Scripture. —Garry Wills, Under God, 1990
8. The usual complement of Kremlin guards was about, one company of infantry with light arms. —Tom Clancy, Red Storm Rising, 1986
9. His faults are accepted as the necessary complement to his merits. —W. Somerset Maugham, Moon and Sixpence, 1919

Illustration of COMPLEMENT

Origin of COMPLEMENT

Middle English, from Latin complementum, from complēre to fill up, complete, from com- + plēre to fill — more at full

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to COMPLEMENT

Synonyms

correlate, supplement

Related Words

addendum, addition, appendix; adjunct, annex, appendage, extension; accessory (also accessary), accompaniment, appliance, attachment; additive, filler

²com·ple·ment

verb \ˈkäm-plə-ˌment\

Definition of COMPLEMENT

intransitive verb

obsolete

: to exchange formal courtesies

transitive verb

1

: to complete or enhance by providing something additional : to be complementary to <the illustrations complement the text>

2

obsolete : compliment

Examples of COMPLEMENT

1. The shirt complements the suit nicely.
2. a delicious dinner complemented by a splendid dessert
3. The soup and salad complement each other well.
4. Carrots often work even better than sticks, so I propose a skinny subsidy to complement the fat tax. —Jonathan Rauch, Atlantic, December 2002
5. The love of Bottom's bottomless vision at least complements, if it does not transcend, the rational love of Theseus. —Frank Kermode, Shakespeare's Language, 2000
6. … his ice-blue Appalachian eyes glint through horn-rimmed glasses, which complement his salt-and-pepper beard. —Henry Louis Gates, Jr., New Yorker, 19 June 1995
7. … lively photographs, illustrations and cartoons designed to complement the meanings of the poems and give a leg-up to the imagination. —Carol Ann Duffy, Times Literary Supplement, 4-10 Dec. 1987

Origin of COMPLEMENT

(see ¹complement)

First Known Use: 1602

Related to COMPLEMENT

Synonyms

complete, round (off or out)

Related Words

finish (off), flesh (out); adorn, beautify, decorate, embellish; better, enhance, improve; constitute, form, make up; enrich, perfect

Rhymes with COMPLEMENT

accident, aliment, Blaenau Gwent, circumvent, compartment, compliment, confident, devilment, diffident, discontent, document, evident, heaven-sent, implement, incident, instrument, Jack-a-Lent, malcontent, nonevent, Occident, ornament, orient, provident, regiment, reinvent, represent, re-present, resident, Saint-Laurent, sediment, self-content, subsequent, supplement

com·ple·ment

noun \ˈkäm-plə-mənt\   (Medical Dictionary)

Medical Definition of COMPLEMENT

1

: a group or set (as of chromosomes or DNA) that is typical of the complete organism or one of its parts—see chromosome complement

2

: a complementary color

3

: the thermolabile group of proteins in normal blood serum and plasma that in combination with antibodies causes the destruction especially of particulate antigens (as bacteria and foreign blood corpuscles)

complement

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

In physiology, a complex system of at least 20 proteins (complement components) in normal blood serum. The binding of one component to an antigen-antibody complex begins a chemical chain reaction important in many immunological processes, including breakdown of foreign and infected cells, ingestion of foreign particles and cell debris, and inflammation of surrounding tissue. Complement components and antibodies are the substances in human serum responsible for killing bacteria.