complete
Americanadjective
-
having all parts or elements; lacking nothing; whole; entire; full.
a complete set of Mark Twain's writings.
- Synonyms:
- unbroken
- Antonyms:
- partial
-
a complete orbit.
-
having all the required or customary characteristics, skills, or the like; consummate; perfect in kind or quality.
a complete scholar.
- Antonyms:
- defective
-
thorough; entire; total; undivided, uncompromised, or unmodified.
a complete victory;
a complete mess.
-
Grammar. having all modifying or complementary elements included.
The complete subject of “The dappled pony gazed over the fence” is “The dappled pony.”
-
Football. Also completed. (of a forward pass) caught by a receiver.
-
Logic. (of a set of axioms) such that every true proposition able to be formulated in terms of the basic ideas of a given system is deducible from the set.
-
Engineering. noting a determinate truss having the least number of members required to connect the panel points so as to form a system of triangles.
-
(of persons) accomplished; skilled; expert.
-
Mathematics.
-
of or relating to an algebraic system, as a field with an order relation defined on it, in which every set of elements of the system has a least upper bound.
-
of or relating to a set in which every fundamental sequence converges to an element of the set.
-
(of a lattice) having the property that every subset has a least upper bound and a greatest lower bound.
-
verb (used with object)
-
to make whole or entire.
I need three more words to complete the puzzle.
- Synonyms:
- close, conclude, terminate, achieve, accomplish, perfect, consummate
-
to make perfect.
His parting look of impotent rage completed my revenge.
-
to bring to an end; finish.
Has he completed his new novel yet?
-
to consummate.
-
Football. to execute (a forward pass) successfully.
He completed 17 passes in 33 attempts.
adjective
-
having every necessary part or element; entire
-
ended; finished
-
(prenominal) thorough; absolute
he is a complete rogue
-
perfect in quality or kind
he is a complete scholar
-
(of a logical system) constituted such that a contradiction arises on the addition of any proposition that cannot be deduced from the axioms of the system Compare consistent
-
(of flowers) having sepals, petals, stamens, and carpels
-
archaic expert or skilled; accomplished
verb
-
to make whole or perfect
-
to end; finish
-
(in land law) to pay any outstanding balance on a contract for the conveyance of land in exchange for the title deeds, so that the ownership of the land changes hands
-
American football (of a quarterback) to make a forward pass successfully
Usage
Occasionally there are objections to modifying complete with qualifiers like almost, more, most, nearly, and quite, because they suggest that complete is relative rather than absolute: an almost complete record; a more complete proposal; the most complete list available. However, such uses are fully standard and occur regularly in all varieties of spoken and written English. See also perfect, unique.
Other Word Forms
- completable adjective
- completedness noun
- completely adverb
- completeness noun
- completer noun
- completion noun
- completive adjective
- completively adverb
- half-completed adjective
- precompleteness noun
- quasi-complete adjective
- subcomplete adjective
- subcompleteness noun
- uncompletable adjective
- uncomplete adjective
- uncompleted adjective
- uncompleteness noun
- well-completed adjective
Etymology
Origin of complete
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Middle French or directly from Latin complētus (past participle of complēre “to fill up, fulfill,” equivalent to com- com- + plē- fill + -tus past participle suffix
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Engines with a 50-50 split between internal combustion and hybrid power - complete with 'overtaking' and 'boost' modes - have led to accusations of artificiality.
From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026
But first, he had to complete his finals.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
Corona Centennial 5, Cypress 1: Jacob Torres threw a complete game with nine strikeouts and Aiden Simpson homered to lead the Huskies in a semifinal game of the National Classic.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 2, 2026
"Thanks to the progress we've made, I can say tonight that we are on track to complete all of America's military objectives shortly, very shortly," Trump said.
From Barron's • Apr. 2, 2026
Part one of his plan was complete: He’d convinced Gingersnipes that her fate was to enter the Afterlife tonight, on All Hallows’ Eve.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
