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definitions

complicated

[ kom-pli-key-tid ]
/ ˈkɒm plɪˌkeɪ tɪd /
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adjective

composed of elaborately interconnected parts; complex: complicated apparatus for measuring brain functions.
difficult to analyze, understand, explain, etc.: a complicated problem.

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RELATED WORDS

troublesome, perplexing, problematic, hard, arduous, fancy, sophisticated, convoluted, intricate, knotty, difficult, puzzling, involved, elaborate, mixed, abstruse, labyrinthine, recondite, various, byzantine

Nearby words

  1. compliance officer,
  2. compliancy,
  3. compliant,
  4. complicacy,
  5. complicate,
  6. complication,
  7. complice,
  8. complicit,
  9. complicity,
  10. complier

Origin of complicated

First recorded in 1640–50; complicate + -ed2
Related formscom·pli·cat·ed·ly, adverbcom·pli·cat·ed·ness, nounun·com·pli·cat·ed, adjective

complicate

[ verb kom-pli-keyt; adjective kom-pli-kit ]
/ verb ˈkɒm plɪˌkeɪt; adjective ˈkɒm plɪ kɪt /

verb (used with object), com·pli·cat·ed, com·pli·cat·ing.

to make complex, intricate, involved, or difficult: His recovery from the operation was complicated by an allergic reaction.

adjective

complex; involved.
Entomology. folded longitudinally one or more times, as the wings of certain insects.

Origin of complicate

1615–25; < Latin complicātus (past participle of complicāre to fold together), equivalent to com- com- + -plic- (combining form of *plecāre to fold, akin to plectī to plait; see complex) + -ātus -ate1
Related formso·ver·com·pli·cate, verb (used with object), o·ver·com·pli·cat·ed, o·ver·com·pli·cat·ing.pre·com·pli·cate, verb (used with object), pre·com·pli·cat·ed, pre·com·pli·cat·ing.re·com·pli·cate, verb (used with object), re·com·pli·cat·ed, re·com·pli·cat·ing.un·com·pli·cate, verb (used with object), un·com·pli·cat·ed, un·com·pli·cat·ing.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for complicated

British Dictionary definitions for complicated

complicated

/ (ˈkɒmplɪˌkeɪtɪd) /

adjective

made up of intricate parts or aspects that are difficult to understand or analyse
Derived Formscomplicatedly, adverbcomplicatedness, noun

complicate

verb (ˈkɒmplɪˌkeɪt)

to make or become complex

adjective (ˈkɒmplɪkɪt)

biology folded on itselfa complicate leaf
a less common word for complicated

Word Origin for complicate

C17: from Latin complicāre to fold together, from plicāre to fold
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
Word Origin and History for complicated
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper