adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of complicated
First recorded in 1640–50; complicate + -ed 2
Explanation
When things get complicated, they are no longer simple and straightforward. If you are asked a question that would require a long, detailed answer, you might just say, "It's complicated." The word complicated came about in the 1640's to mean "tangled" or "difficult to unravel." This makes sense, considering it came from the Latin verb complicāre, meaning "to fold together." Consider that something with many folds is more complicated than something flat. Novelist Robert Ludlum said, "Life is extremely complicated," but Confucius long ago suggested that "Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated." Just having those two opposing viewpoints indicates how complicated life can be.
Vocabulary lists containing complicated
Schooled
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Twelve Angry Men
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"Sorry, Wrong Number," Vocabulary from the play
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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.
I inquired about his experience on “Other Desert Cities” by Jon Robin Baitz, his former romantic partner, wondering if it was complicated to work with an ex.
From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026
Whatever you as a parent need for your own complicated life, anyone over the age of 18 needs the same, because they are now considered independent beings.
From MarketWatch • May 5, 2026
Among the more complicated dynamics I had to navigate as a correspondent in China was navigating my two identities: a Japanese person who worked for an American newspaper.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 5, 2026
Despite the often chaotic Croatian traffic and complicated intersections, Verne's head of country operations, Filip Cindric, said most rides are completed "without any intervention".
From Barron's • May 5, 2026
Next came Lehman Brothers, which was simply allowed to go bankrupt—whereupon things became even more complicated.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
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.
