complex
composed of many interconnected parts; compound; composite: a complex highway system.
characterized by a very complicated or involved arrangement of parts, units, etc.: complex machinery.
so complicated or intricate as to be hard to understand or deal with: a complex problem.
Grammar.
(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.
Mathematics. pertaining to or using complex numbers: complex methods; complex vector space.
an intricate or complicated association or assemblage of related things, parts, units, etc.: the entire complex of our educational system; an apartment complex.
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.
a fixed idea; an obsessive notion.
Mathematics.
an arbitrary set of elements of a group.
a collection of simplexes having specified properties.
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).
Biochemistry. an entity composed of molecules in which the constituents maintain much of their chemical identity: receptor-hormone complex, enzyme-substrate complex.
Chemistry. to form a complex with.
Chemistry. to form a complex.
Origin of complex
1Other words for complex
Opposites for complex
Other words from complex
- com·plex·ly, adverb
- com·plex·ness, noun
- o·ver·com·plex, adjective
- qua·si-com·plex, adjective
- qua·si-com·plex·ly, adverb
- su·per·com·plex, adjective
- un·com·plex, adjective
- un·com·plex·ly, adverb
- un·com·plex·ness, noun
Words Nearby complex
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use complex in a sentence
This issue of underutilized existing housing is complex and there’s not much hard data, so it’s a natural fit for us to work on bringing clarity and new ideas to this conversation.
Vacancy Tax Study Is Giving City Officials Déjà Vu | Lisa Halverstadt and Andrew Keatts | February 10, 2021 | Voice of San DiegoThe most complex global and societal issues can be broken down into smaller solvable tech challenges.
Throughout the game Mono navigates disturbing environments — like drab apartment complexes or a hospital overrun with sentient mannequins — each filled with furniture two sizes too large.
‘Little Nightmares II’ made me dread every moment. And I loved it. | Elise Favis | February 9, 2021 | Washington Post“It’s not just proteins, it’s a complex, emotional product,” says Aleph chief executive Didier Toubia.
Raising the steaks: First 3-D-printed rib-eye is unveiled | Laura Reiley | February 9, 2021 | Washington PostPer the agreement, organizations are limited to 75 players and 75 staff at their complexes, and are encouraged to spread them out as much as possible.
MLB, players’ union agree to health and safety protocols, clearing way for spring training to start | Chelsea Janes | February 9, 2021 | Washington Post
It was a complex task they were asked to do, and every cultural and experiential advantage would be required.
Why Did We Panic After 9/11 and Ignore All We Knew About Responding to Security Threats? | Deborah Pearlstein | December 18, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTHowever, their presence shows that Mars could have a more complex and evolving chemical story.
KSM enters the complex through a “Sally Port,” a series of gates designed to allow just one vehicle in at a time.
We are a huge, complex, diverse country still offering freedom, opportunity and hope.
If Congress struggles to keep the lights on, how could it deal with issues as complex as police brutality?
Sharpton Recalls Civil Rights Struggle in DC March Against Police Violence | Ben Jacobs | December 13, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe act of the Covenanting Society is complex, and is the aggregate of the actings of all who compose it.
The Ordinance of Covenanting | John CunninghamHe knows when a sentiment is simple and when it is complex, when the heart is a dupe of the mind and when of the senses.
Repertory Of The Comedie Humaine, Complete, A -- Z | Anatole Cerfberr and Jules Franois ChristopheThe solution of the problem, if complex in all clinical affections, is especially so in epilepsy.
A Statistical Inquiry Into the Nature and Treatment of Epilepsy | Alexander Hughes BennettBud did not say anything; your efficient chauffeur reserves his eloquence for something more complex than a dead engine.
Cabin Fever | B. M. BowerIt is the most complex of all, as the lines contain internal rimes.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems | Geoffrey Chaucer
British Dictionary definitions for complex
/ (ˈkɒmplɛks) /
made up of various interconnected parts; composite
(of thoughts, writing, etc) intricate or involved
grammar
(of a word) containing at least one bound form
(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
(of a sentence) formed by subordination of one clause to another
maths of or involving one or more complex numbers
a whole made up of interconnected or related parts: a building complex
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
informal an obsession or excessive fear: he's got a complex about cats
Also called: coordination 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
any chemical compound in which one molecule is linked to another by a coordinate bond
Origin of complex
1usage For complex
Derived forms of complex
- complexly, adverb
- complexness, noun
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
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