<B>complement, </B>noun, verb.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>something that completes or makes perfect. <BR> <I>Ex. The teacher considers homework a necessary complement to classroom work. Philosophy is a good complement of scientific studies.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>the number required to complete or make perfect. <BR> <I>Ex. The ship now had its full complement of men, and no more could be taken on.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>full quantity or amount. <BR> <I>Ex. He had the usual complement of eyes and ears (Francis Parkman).</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>a word or group of words completing a predicate. In "The man is good," <I>good</I> is a complement. <DD><B> 5. </B>each of two parts which complete each other. <DD><B> 6. </B>(Mathematics.) <DD><B> a. </B>the amount needed to make an angle or an arc equal to 90 degrees; the angle or arc by which a given angle or arc is less than 90 degrees. <DD><B> b. </B>those members of a set that do not belong to a subset. (Example:) In the set (1, 2, 3, 4) the complement of subset (2, 4) is (1,3). <DD><B> 7. </B>(Music.) the interval which added to a given interval completes an octave. <DD><B> 8. </B>(Medicine.) a substance or group of substances found in normal blood serum and protoplasm which combines with antibodies to destroy bacteria and other foreign bodies. <DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to supply a lack of any kind; complete. <BR> <I>Ex. My fishing poles complement his hooks and lines, so that together we can go fishing. The two brothers complemented each other; one was impulsive and outspoken, the other, cautious and reticent.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>(Obsolete.) to praise; commend; flatter. <DD><I>v.i. </I> (Obsolete.) to behave with courtesy or ceremony. </DL>
<B>complementarity, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B><I>no pl.</I> (Physics.) the principle that physical phenomena may be described in terms of waves, characterized by wave length and frequency, or in terms of the motion of particles, characterized by energy and momentum. <DD><B> 2. </B>pl. <B>-ties.</B> a complementary relationship. <BR> <I>Ex. The contrasts and complementarities of the variations in Opus 109 sound positively choppy (Igor Stravinsky).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="complementary">
<B>complementary, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>forming a complement; completing. <BR> <I>Ex. The four seasons are complementary parts of the year.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>mutually complementing each other's deficiencies. </DL>
<A NAME="complementaryair">
<B>complementary air,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the air which can be drawn into the lungs by an effort after the ordinary inspiration is completed. </DL>
<A NAME="complementaryangle">
<B>complementary angle,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> either of two angles which together form an angle of 90 degrees. <BR> <I>Ex. A 30-degree angle is the complementary angle of a 60-degree angle.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="complementarycell">
<B>complementary cell,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Botany.) one of the cells which make up lenticel tissue. </DL>
<A NAME="complementarycolors">
<B>complementary colors,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> two colors whose reflected lights combine to produce white or gray. Red and green are complementary colors. </DL>
<A NAME="complementarydistribution">
<B>complementary distribution,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Linguistics.) the pattern of exclusive occurrence of a member in a pair of speech sounds or other linguistic forms, such as morphemes; complementation. In complementary distribution, either of the two members of any pair will exclude the other member in a particular occurrence because of different environment or context. For example, the two allophones of the phoneme <I>t</I> in English, unaspirated <I>t</I> as in <I>still</I> and aspirated <I>t</I> as in <I>till,</I> are in complementary distribution, because only the unaspirated form can occur after <I>s</I> and only the aspirated form can occur at the beginning of a word. <BR> <I>Ex. This important principle, known as complementary distribution, guarantees against error in listing the phonemes of a language; it is the cornerstone of structural phonology (Joshua Whatmough).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="complementarymale">
<B>complementary male,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (in certain crustaceans and worms) a dwarf male that lives as a parasite upon the ordinary hermaphrodite individuals. </DL>
<A NAME="complementation">
<B>complementation, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>(Mathematics.) an operation to determine the complement of a subset. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Linguistics.) complementary distribution. </DL>
<A NAME="complementfixation">
<B>complement fixation,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Medicine.) the binding of complement to an antigen-antibody mixture, making it unavailable for subsequent reaction. </DL>
<A NAME="complete">
<B>complete, </B>adjective, verb, <B>-pleted,</B> <B>-pleting.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><I>adj. </I> <B>1. </B>with all the parts; whole; entire. <BR> <I>Ex. a complete set of dominoes. We have a complete set of garden tools.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>(of a period of time) that has run its full course; whole. <BR> <I>Ex. The gardener spent a complete afternoon trimming those two shrubs.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>perfect; thorough. <BR> <I>Ex. a complete surprise, complete happiness.</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>finished; done. <BR> <I>Ex. My homework is complete.</I> <DD><B> 5. </B>(of a flower) having all four types of floral organs: sepals, petals, stamens, and pistils. <DD><B> 6. </B>(Archaic.) fully equipped or endowed; accomplished. <BR> <I>Ex. a complete gentleman.</I> <DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to make whole or entire; make up the whole number or amount of. <BR> <I>Ex. She completed her set of dishes by buying the cups and saucers.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to make perfect or thorough. <BR> <I>Ex. The good news completed my happiness.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>to get done; end; finish. <BR> <I>Ex. The band completed the piece before everyone clapped. By spring they had completed the house and moved in.</I> noun <B>completeness.</B> noun <B>completer.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="completefertilizer">
<B>complete fertilizer,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> any fertilizer including in its composition the elements nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. </DL>
<A NAME="completely">
<B>completely, </B>adverb.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>entirely; wholly. <BR> <I>Ex. The runner was completely worn out.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>thoroughly; perfectly. <BR> <I>Ex. The new play was completely delightful.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="completemetamorphosis">
<B>complete metamorphosis,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> metamorphosis in which the insect passes through four separate stages of growth; holometabolism. A butterfly or a moth undergoes complete metamorphosis as embryo, larva, pupa, and imago. </DL>
<A NAME="completeprotein">
<B>complete protein,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a protein that contains every amino acid essential for building blood and tissue. Animal proteins, unlike the proteins in most vegetables, are complete proteins. </DL>
<A NAME="completequadrilateral">
<B>complete quadrilateral,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a plane figure formed by four straight lines (extended) intersecting at six points. </DL>
<A NAME="completion">
<B>completion, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the act of completing; finishing. <BR> <I>Ex. After the completion of the job, the workmen went home.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>the condition of being completed. <BR> <I>Ex. The work is near completion.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="completive">
<B>completive, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> serving to complete. adv. <B>completively.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="complex">
<B>complex, </B>adjective, noun, verb.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>adj. </I> <B>1. </B>made up of a number of parts. <BR> <I>Ex. A watch is a complex device. Hemoglobin is a complex chemical substance in the blood.</I> (SYN) composite, compound. <DD><B> 2. </B>hard to understand; complicated. <BR> <I>Ex. The instructions for building the radio were so complex we could not follow them.</I> (SYN) involved, intricate. <DD><I>noun </I> <B>1a. </B>a complicated whole. <BR> <I>Ex. The assembly line handled a complex of 200 parts.</I> <DD><B> b. </B>a group of related or connected buildings, structures, or units. <BR> <I>Ex. The four-building complex will include a library, museum, and an auditorium and planetarium (New York Times).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>(Psychology.) an idea or group of repressed ideas associated with a past emotional disturbance so as to influence a person's present behavior to a great or excessive degree. <BR> <I>Ex. a complex of inferiority. Complexes are not to be regarded as distinctly abnormal phenomena, since they are a component of every individual's mental life (Strecker and Ebaugh).</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>a strong prejudice; unreasonable dislike or fear. <BR> <I>Ex. She has a complex about snakes.</I> <DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to chelate. <BR> <I>Ex. Extra chemicals are sometimes prescribed to complex dissolved iron (New Scientist).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to combine into a complex whole; complicate. <BR> <I>Ex. Mere murder got complexed with wile (Robert Browning).</I> adv. <B>complexly.</B> noun <B>complexness.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="complexfraction">
<B>complex fraction,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a fraction having a fraction or mixed number in the numerator, in the denominator, or in both; compound fraction. </DL>
