complementary color

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noun

Art.

one of a pair of primary or secondary colors opposed to the other member of the pair on a schematic chart or scale (color wheel ), as green opposed to red, orange opposed to blue, or violet opposed to yellow.Compare analogous color.
the relationship of these pairs of colors perceived as completing or enhancing each other.

QUIZ

ARE YOU A TRUE BLUE CHAMPION OF THESE "BLUE" SYNONYMS?

We could talk until we're blue in the face about this quiz on words for the color "blue," but we think you should take the quiz and find out if you're a whiz at these colorful terms.

Question 1 of 8

Which of the following words describes “sky blue”?

navy

beryl

azure

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

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Origin of complementary color

First recorded in 1820–30

Words nearby complementary color

complementary air, complementary angle, complementary angles, complementary base, complementary cells, complementary color, complementary colour, complementary distribution, complementary DNA, complementary gene, complementary hypertrophy

How to use complementary color in a sentence

Go for similar, complementary colors that won’t clash and you’ll be good to go.
Best winter hats: Comfortable hats to keep you warm|Carsen Joenk|January 20, 2021|Popular-Science
Even other men of color considered Revels a curious figure, for Mississippi had never had a large free black population.
The Black Man Who Replaced Jefferson Davis in the Senate|Philip Dray|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Similarly, a recent NPR report covered the challenges many police departments are having recruiting officers of color.
How to Solve the Policing Crisis|Keli Goff|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The losers have always been children in poverty, children of color, and children with disabilities.
The ‘No Child’ Rewrite Threatens Your Kids’ Future|Jonah Edelman|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST

In Brazil people color code their underwear according to their needs.
New Year’s Eve, Babylon Style|Candida Moss|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She says that every film she makes, she has to hit someone—The Color Purple, The Butler, and Selma.
Ava DuVernay on ‘Selma,’ the Racist Sony Emails, and Making Golden Globes History|Marlow Stern|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The pink flowers are the largest while those of a yellow color are the smallest.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
She was growing accustomed to like shocks, but she could not keep the mounting color back from her cheeks.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
Her attachment to impressionism leads this artist to many experiments in color—or, as one critic wrote, "to play with color."
Women in the fine arts, from the Seventh Century B.C. to the Twentieth Century A.D.|Clara Erskine Clement
She also practises etching, pen-and-ink drawing, as well as crayon and water-color sketching.
Women in the fine arts, from the Seventh Century B.C. to the Twentieth Century A.D.|Clara Erskine Clement
They are succeeded by kidney shaped capsules of a brown color.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.

Scientific definitions for complementary color

complementary color

A secondary color that, when combined with the primary color whose wavelength it does not contain, produces white light. Thus yellow, which is produced by mixing the primary colors red and green, is the complementary color of blue. See Note at color.