complete

adjective

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com·plete | \ kəm-ˈplēt

completer; completest

Definition of complete

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : having all necessary parts, elements, or steps a complete diet

b of a protein : containing all essential amino acids Beans and grains combined together form a complete protein.

2a : total, absolute complete silence

b : fully carried out : thorough a complete renovation

c of a football pass : legally caught

3 : brought to an end : concluded a complete period of time

4 : highly proficient a complete artist

5 of a subject or predicate : including modifiers, complements, or objects

6 of insect metamorphosis : characterized by the occurrence of a pupal stage between the motile immature stages and the adult — compare incomplete sense 3

7 : having all four sets of floral organs

8 of a metric space : having the property that every Cauchy sequence of elements converges to a limit in the space

complete with

: made complete by the inclusion of a birthday cake complete with candles

complete

verb

completed; completing

Definition of complete (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : to bring to an end and especially into a perfected state complete a painting

2a : to make whole or perfect Its song completes the charm of the bird. Her latest purchase completes her collection.

b : to mark the end of A rousing chorus completes the show.

c : execute, fulfill complete a contract

3 : to carry out (a forward pass) successfully The quarterback completed 12 out of 18 passes.

Other Words from complete Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about complete

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Synonyms & Antonyms for complete

Synonyms: Adjective

Synonyms: Verb

Antonyms: Adjective

Choose the Right Synonym for complete

Adjective

full, complete, plenary, replete mean containing all that is wanted or needed or possible. full implies the presence or inclusion of everything that is wanted or required by something or that can be held, contained, or attained by it. a full schedule complete applies when all that is needed is present. a complete picture of the situation plenary adds to complete the implication of fullness without qualification. given plenary power replete implies being filled to the brim or to satiety. replete with delightful details

Verb

close, end, conclude, finish, complete, terminate mean to bring or come to a stopping point or limit. close usually implies that something has been in some way open as well as unfinished. close a debate end conveys a strong sense of finality. ended his life conclude may imply a formal closing (as of a meeting). the service concluded with a blessing finish may stress completion of a final step in a process. after it is painted, the house will be finished complete implies the removal of all deficiencies or a successful finishing of what has been undertaken. the resolving of this last issue completes the agreement terminate implies the setting of a limit in time or space. your employment terminates after three months

Examples of complete in a Sentence

Adjective He spoke in complete sentences. They sat in complete silence. Verb The project took four months to complete. Her latest purchase completes her collection. The new baby completed their family. The quarterback completed 12 out of 15 passes.

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective Then there's a charming old house that features depictions of masked healthcare workers sporting the fleur-de-lis symbol that is often associated with New Orleans, complete with giant pearl-like strands draped from the home’s many ionic columns. — Mary Elizabeth Andriotis, House Beautiful, "In Lieu of Floats, New Orleans Residents Decorated Their Homes for Mardi Gras This Year," 17 Feb. 2021 To celebrate Queen Elizabeth's 94th birthday, the royal chefs released a chocolate cupcake recipe, complete with some very appropriate decorations. — Chloe Foussianes, Town & Country, "Cook Like Kate Middleton, Queen Elizabeth, and Prince Charles with These Royal Recipes," 16 Feb. 2021 In the '80s, we're served up Walkmans, neon colours in everyday settings, and voluminous 'dos complete with bangs and oversized jewellery. — Martha Sorren, refinery29.com, "Why Are Razr Flip Phones The Height Of Sophistication In Firefly Lane?," 5 Feb. 2021 Now that the 2021 hiring season is mostly complete, Goodell and diversity advocates still likely aren’t satisfied. — Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, "NFL makes some progress with diversity hiring, but much more work needs to be done," 30 Jan. 2021 It was probably wiped out by a wide range of habitat-degrading factors, including pollution, unsustainable fishing and near-complete deforestation around nearby rivers. — John R. Platt, Scientific American, "What We've Lost: The Species Declared Extinct in 2020," 13 Jan. 2021 The Hyperloop is a new form of transportation similar to the high-speed maglev trains in Japan, South Korea, and China, but has one key difference — the trains travel in a near-complete vacuum tube. — Tyler Van Dyke, Washington Examiner, "After first manned test ride, Virgin Hyperloop co-founder says pod transport is not a pipe dream," 16 Dec. 2020 The pre-pandemic large breakfast, lunch and dinner orders that once fueled local office meetings have been replaced by individual delivered meals and snacks as well as virtual cooking classes complete with grocery delivery for employee perks. — Justin Phillips, San Francisco Chronicle, "Bay Area corporate dining didn't disappear. Caterers are now delivering the same lunches to employees at home," 5 Feb. 2021 Therefore, an appetite suppressant needs to be one part of a total weight loss program complete with significant lifestyle changes. — Norcal Marketing, Chron, "Best Appetite Suppressants 2021: Top 5 Hunger Control Pills That Work," 4 Feb. 2021 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb How the district plans to complete the season is still up in the air. — David Hinojosa, San Antonio Express-News, "Winter storm freezes high school basketball season," 16 Feb. 2021 When her kids log into class from their Detroit Lakes home, Schermerhorn stays off the internet to avoid overloading it and waits until night to complete her assignments or parks in front of the college to use the Wi-Fi. — Ryan Faircloth, Star Tribune, "Minnesota college students with children face overwhelming balancing act during pandemic," 13 Feb. 2021 Stanford’s goal is for all its teams to complete a season this spring. — Ann Killion, San Francisco Chronicle, "Stanford faces backlash over bonuses to football, basketball staff amid sports cuts," 4 Feb. 2021 With money from the local county government, Lone Star College, which serves Greater Houston, rolled out noncredit programs for in-demand jobs that students could complete in less than three months. — Caroline Preston, Wired, "The Recession Exposes the US’ Failures on Worker Retraining," 1 Feb. 2021 The top three home renovations that homeowners hoped to complete within their budgets in 2020 were a new bathroom (28%); a new kitchen (23%); and fencing in their yards (21%). — Bill Jordan, Dallas News, "Incorporating renovations into the ‘new normal’ of homeownership," 31 Jan. 2021 Navigating a global pandemic forced the NFL to constantly adapt to and overcome obstacles in order to complete its 2020 season. — Nate Davis, USA TODAY, "NFL was forced to adapt during coronavirus pandemic, and some changes could stick," 31 Jan. 2021 House Appropriations Committee Chairperson Terry England, R-Auburn, said the committee worked fast to complete the budget in case the pandemic worsens. — Nyamekye Daniel, Washington Examiner, "Georgia House to vote on amended 2021 budget," 28 Jan. 2021 After a recent meeting, some commission members acknowledged the state would be unlikely to complete the process in time this year. — Mike Schneider, ajc, "US House data not ready until April, states' data after July," 27 Jan. 2021

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'complete.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

24 Feb 2021

Cite this Entry

“Complete.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/complete. Accessed 6 Mar. 2021.

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More Definitions for complete

complete

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of complete

(Entry 1 of 2)

: having all necessary parts : not lacking anything

: not limited in any way

: not requiring more work : entirely done or completed

complete

verb

English Language Learners Definition of complete (Entry 2 of 2)

: to finish making or doing (something) : to bring (something) to an end or to a finished state

: to make (something) whole or perfect

American football : to throw (a forward pass) to a teammate who catches it

See the full definition for complete in the English Language Learners Dictionary

complete

adjective

com·plete | \ kəm-ˈplēt

Kids Definition of complete

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : having all necessary parts : not lacking anything a complete set of books

2 : entirely done His training is complete.

3 : thorough sense 1 complete darkness

complete

verb

completed; completing

Kids Definition of complete (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : to bring to an end : finish complete a job

2 : to make whole or perfect He needs six more state flags to complete his collection.

complete

adjective

com·plete | \ kəm-ˈplēt

Medical Definition of complete

1 of insect metamorphosis : characterized by the occurrence of a pupal stage between the motile immature stages and the adult — compare incomplete sense 1

2 of a bone fracture : characterized by a break passing entirely across the bone — compare incomplete sense 2

3 of a protein : containing all essential amino acids — compare incomplete sense 4

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