I. ˈkämpləmənt noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin complementum, from complēre to fill up, complete + -mentum -ment — more at complete
1. : something that fills up or completes: as
a. : something that fills out and makes perfect : a completing or consummating part, integral, or component : completion
a European tour was then the necessary complement of a gentle upbringing and a liberal education
although Bergson often represented intuition as a complement to reason, he as often separated and opposed them — H.J.Muller
b. : the quantity or number required to fill a thing or make it complete : full allowance
a farm with a full complement of stock
a platoon with its normal complement of weapons
the usual complement of office personnel
c. : the necessary and completing opposing item : one of two mutually completing parts : counterpart
he had found someone whose … masculinity was the very complement of his own fragile graces — H.V.Gregory
some kind of school was the complement of each meetinghouse — American Guide Series: North Carolina
2. obsolete
a. : the act or action of fulfilling or making up
b. : the quality or state of being complete
3.
a. : the amount of angle or arc by which a given angle or arc falls short of 90°
b. : minor I 4
c. : the numerical amount that must be added to a number to give the least number containing one more digit
the complement of 4 is 6 and that of 45 is 55
4. obsolete
a. : something added for equipping or ornamentation especially of the person : accessory
b. : a social quality or accomplishment
c. : a ceremonial or courteous observance that rounds off a service or action or the deportment of an individual
5. : the whole force or personnel of a ship ; specifically : the entire force of officers and crew allowed to a naval vessel for wartime operations
6. heraldry : fullness of the moon
7. : the interval in music required with a given interval to complete the octave
8. : an added word by which a predication is made complete (as president in “they elected him president” or white in “he painted the house white”)
9. : a complementary color
10. : the thermolabile substance in normal blood serum and plasma that in combination with antibodies causes the destruction of bacteria, foreign blood corpuscles, and other antigens
11. logic : the negate of a given class a or statement p
[s]compleme.jpg[/s] [
complement 3a: ACB right angle, ACD complement of DCB (and vice versa), AD complement of DB (and vice versa)
]
II. -ˌment, -_mənt — see -ment II verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
transitive verb
1. : to fill in or make up (what is lacking) : round off
the museum is complemented by a spacious garden — American Guide Series: Michigan
your chosen perfume complements your personality — D.S.Lyle
2. obsolete : compliment
intransitive verb
obsolete : compliment
III. noun
1. : 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
2. : a phrasal category (as a noun phrase or sentence) that is combined with a lexical head (as a verb) or a function word to form a larger constituent