Advertisement

View synonyms for

complex

[ adjective verb kuhm-pleks, kom-pleks; noun kom-pleks ]

adjective

  1. composed of many interconnected parts; compound; composite:

    a complex highway system.

  2. characterized by a very complicated or involved arrangement of parts, units, etc.:

    complex machinery.

    Antonyms:

  3. so complicated or intricate as to be hard to understand or deal with:

    a complex problem.

    Synonyms: , ,

    Antonyms:

  4. Grammar.
    1. (of a word) consisting of two parts, at least one of which is a bound form, as childish, which consists of the word child and the bound form -ish.
  5. Mathematics. pertaining to or using complex numbers:

    complex methods; complex vector space.



noun

  1. an intricate or complicated association or assemblage of related things, parts, units, etc.:

    the entire complex of our educational system; an apartment complex.

    Synonyms: , , ,

  2. Psychology. a system of interrelated, emotion-charged ideas, feelings, memories, and impulses that is usually repressed and that gives rise to abnormal or pathological behavior.
  3. a fixed idea; an obsessive notion.
  4. Mathematics.
    1. an arbitrary set of elements of a group.
    2. a collection of simplexes having specified properties.
  5. Also called coordination compound. Chemistry. a compound in which independently existing molecules or ions of a nonmetal complexing agent form coordinate bonds with a metal atom or ion. Compare ligand ( def 2 ).
  6. Biochemistry. an entity composed of molecules in which the constituents maintain much of their chemical identity:

    receptor-hormone complex, enzyme-substrate complex.

verb (used with object)

  1. Chemistry. to form a complex with.

verb (used without object)

  1. Chemistry. to form a complex.

complex

/ ˈɒɛ /

adjective

  1. made up of various interconnected parts; composite
  2. (of thoughts, writing, etc) intricate or involved
  3. grammar
    1. (of a word) containing at least one bound form
    2. (of a noun phrase) containing both a lexical noun and an embedded clause, as for example the italicized parts of the following sentence: I didn't know the man who served me
    3. (of a sentence) formed by subordination of one clause to another
  4. maths of or involving one or more complex numbers
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a whole made up of interconnected or related parts

    a building complex

  2. psychoanal a group of emotional ideas or impulses that have been banished from the conscious mind but that continue to influence a person's behaviour
  3. informal.
    an obsession or excessive fear

    he's got a complex about cats

  4. Also calledcoordination compound a chemical compound in which molecules, groups, or ions are attached to a central metal atom, esp a transition metal atom, by coordinate bonds
  5. any chemical compound in which one molecule is linked to another by a coordinate bond
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Discover More

Usage

Complex is sometimes wrongly used where complicated is meant. Complex is properly used to say only that something consists of several parts. It should not be used to say that, because something consists of many parts, it is difficult to understand or analyse
Discover More

Derived Forms

  • ˈdz, adverb
  • ˈdzԱ, noun
Discover More

Other Word Forms

  • dz·l adverb
  • dz·n noun
  • v·dz· adjective
  • ܲȴ-dz· adjective
  • quasi-dz·l adverb
  • p·dz· adjective
  • ܲcdz· adjective
  • undz·l adverb
  • undz·n noun
Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of complex1

First recorded in 1645–55; 1905–10 complex fordef 7; adjective from Latin complexus, past participle of dz𳦳ī, complectere “to embrace, encompass, include,” equivalent to complect- ( complect ) + -tus past participle suffix; noun from Late Latin complexus “totality, complex” ( Latin: “inclusion, grasping, embrace”), equivalent to complect(ere) + -tus suffix of verb action; reanalysis of the Latin verb as “to intertwine (completely)” influenced sense of the adjective
Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of complex1

C17: from Latin complexus, from dz𳦳ī to entwine, from com- together + plectere to braid
Discover More

Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

So, calling Trump's tariffs a clear "win" or "loss" for South America oversimplifies a complex situation.

From

Det Insp Butt said a post-mortem examination was undertaken at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff where the cause of death was found to be a "complex sharp force injury to the neck area".

From

"All of these places have flat floors. Why would you want the added expense of a very complex form factor... when you could just put it on a mobile base?" he asks.

From

"This is an incredibly complex question that we are looking at about how we reform our energy market," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

From

It’s a complex feedback cycle, which bias might influence species’ value at each link in the chain and their connections.

From

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement


completistcomplex analysis