complementComplements are words or groups of words that are necessary to complete the meaning of another part of the sentence. Complements act like modifiers to add additional meaning to the word or words they are attached to. However, unlike adjunct modifiers, they do not add supplemental information?they provide information that is necessary to achieve the intended meaning in the sentence.Complements, even those that complete the meaning of the subject, are always part of the predicate.Continue reading…complementsomething that completes or brings to perfection: Wine complements a dinner.Not to be confused with:compliment ? an expression of admiration; praise; regards: My compliments to the chef.Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embreecom·ple·ment (k?m?pl?-m?nt)n.1. a. Something that completes, makes up a whole, or brings to perfection: a sauce that is a fine complement to fish.b. The quantity or number needed to make up a whole: shelves with a full complement of books.c. The full crew of personnel required to run a ship.d. Either of two parts that complete the whole or mutually complete each other.2. An angle related to another so that the sum of their measures is 90°.3. Grammar A word or words used to complete a predicate construction, especially the object or indirect object of a verb, for example, the phrase to eat ice cream in We like to eat ice cream.4. Music An interval that completes an octave when added to a given interval.5. Immunology A complex system of proteins found in blood plasma that are sequentially activated and play various roles in the immune response, including lysing bacterial cell membranes, making pathogens more susceptible to phagocytes, and recruiting inflammatory cells to sites of infection or injury. Also called alexin.6. Mathematics & Logic For a universal set, the set of all elements in the set that are not in a specified subset.7. A complementary color.tr.v. (-m?nt?) com·ple·ment·ed, com·ple·ment·ing, com·ple·ments To serve as a complement to: Roses in a silver bowl complement the handsome cherry table.[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin compl?mentum, from compl?re, to fill out; see complete.]Usage Note: Complement and compliment, though quite distinct in meaning, are sometimes confused because they are pronounced the same. As a noun, complement means “something that completes or brings to perfection” (The antique silver was a complement to the beautifully set table); used as a verb it means “to serve as a complement to.” The noun compliment means “an expression or act of courtesy or praise” (They gave us a compliment on our beautifully set table), while the verb means “to pay a compliment to.”American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.complement n 1. a person or thing that completes something 2. one of two parts that make up a whole or complete each other 3. a complete amount, number, etc (often in the phrase full complement) 4. (Nautical Terms) the officers and crew needed to man a ship 5. (Grammar) grammar a. a noun phrase that follows a copula or similar verb, as for example an idiot in the sentence He is an idiotb. a clause that serves as the subject or direct object of a verb or the direct object of a preposition, as for example that he would be early in the sentence I hoped that he would be early 6. (Mathematics) maths the angle that, when added to a specified angle, produces a right angle 7. (Logic) logic maths the class of all things, or of all members of a given universe of discourse, that are not members of a given set 8. (Mathematics) logic maths the class of all things, or of all members of a given universe of discourse, that are not members of a given set 9. (Music, other) music the inverted form of an interval that, when added to the interval, completes the octave: the sixth is the complement of the third. 10. (Microbiology) immunol a group of proteins in the blood serum that, when activated by antibodies, causes destruction of alien cells, such as bacteria vb (tr) to add to, make complete, or form a complement to [C14: from Latin compl?mentum, from compl?re to fill up, from com- (intensive) + pl?re to fill] Usage: Avoid confusion with complimentCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014com?ple?ment (n. ?k?m pl? m?nt; v. -?m?nt) n. 1. something that completes or makes perfect: A good wine is a complement to a good meal. 2. the quantity or amount that completes anything: We now have a full complement of bridge players. 3. either of two parts or things needed to complete the whole; counterpart. 4. the full number of officers and crew required on a ship. 5. a. a word or group of words that completes a grammatical construction in the predicate and that describes or is identified with the subject or object, as small in The house is small or president in They elected him president. Compare object complement, subject complement. b. any word or group of words used to complete a grammatical construction, esp. in the predicate, including adverbials, infinitives, and sometimes objects. c. complement clause. 6. the quantity by which an angle or an arc falls short of 90° or a quarter of a circle. Compare supplement (def. 3). 7. Math. the set of all the elements of a universal set not included in a given set. 8. a musical interval that completes an octave when added to a given interval. 9. a. a set of about 20 proteins that circulate in the blood and react in various combinations to promote the destruction of any cell displaying foreign surfaces or immune complexes. b. any of the proteins in the complement system, designated C1, C2, etc. 10. complementary color. v.t. 11. to complete; form a complement to. 12. Obs. to compliment. v.i. 13. Obs. to compliment. [1350?1400; Middle English These words can both be verbs or nouns. When they are verbs, they are pronounced /’k?mpl?ment/. When they are nouns, they are pronounced /’k?mpl?m?nt/.If one thing complements another, the two things increase each other’s good qualities when they are brought together.If you compliment someone, you tell them that you admire something that they have or something that they have done.A compliment is something that you do or say to someone to show your admiration for them.You say that you pay someone a compliment.