complaint
Americannoun
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complaints
plural
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an expression of discontent, regret, pain, censure, resentment, or grief; lament; faultfinding.
his complaint about poor schools.
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a cause of discontent, pain, grief, lamentation, etc.
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a cause of bodily pain or ailment; malady.
The doctor says I suffer from a rare complaint.
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Law. the first pleading of the plaintiff in a civil action, stating the cause of action.
noun
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the act of complaining; an expression of grievance
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a cause for complaining; grievance
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a mild ailment
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English law a statement by which a civil proceeding in a magistrates' court is commenced
Usage
What does complaint mean? A complaint is a statement about something you’re unhappy or upset about. It has more specific meanings in legal and medical contexts. Complaint is the noun form of the verb complain. In legal terms, a complaint is the document that officially initiates a legal proceeding. In medicine, it refers to a symptom or cause of pain as reported by a patient. Example: I liked the movie, but my one complaint is that the women in the cast didn’t get enough screen time.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of complaint
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English compleynte, from Middle French complainte, from Latin com- com- + plancta plaint
Explanation
A complaint is an objection to something that is unfair, unacceptable, or otherwise not up to normal standards. If your neighbors have a complaint about noise, they want you to be more quiet. A complaint is voiced objection to something, like a complaint about cold or disgusting-tasting food in a restaurant. Complaint is also a legal term — the plaintiff's reasons for bringing a civil action. Medically speaking, a complaint is a disorder or disease that is hard to cure completely. Loud cries of pain, anger, or sadness can also be called complaints.
Vocabulary lists containing complaint
"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 15
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"The Clever Magistrate"
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"Pass It On," "If There Be Pain," and "Sonnet 30"
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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.
See Examples For:
Severin said Etihad Airways' complaint "does not, of itself, establish procedural unfairness".
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
Some of the addresses listed in the criminal complaint match those of historic downtown corridor buildings such as the Cameo Theatre and the Roxie Theatre.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
The constitutional court confirmed to AFP that it had received a legal complaint about the law and a decision is expected in the first half of 2027.
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
Alfozan had no authority to access or be involved with meetings in the room, the complaint states.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
Two years earlier, in fact, Burr had claimed to have confronted Hamilton with a personal complaint about incessant vilifications of his character, and Hamilton had acknowledged his indiscretion.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
The pledge comes as smoke from Indonesian wildfires blankets parts of Southeast Asia, closing schools and fuelling a surge in respiratory complaints across the region.
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026
Meanwhile, social-media complaints about prices fell to around 1.5% in the third quarter from between 4% and 5% in the first three months of the year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
In the year to August the Citizens Advice Consumer Service received 9,000 complaints about roofing work, including problems with construction, repairs and weatherproofing.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
Employees shouldn’t have to manufacture delight on demand while working short-staffed shifts for inadequate pay, fielding customer complaints about things outside their control.
From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2026
The attack on the church began in earnest in 1517, when a constipated German monk nailed a list of complaints to the door of the church in Wittenberg.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
