compliment

nounverbcommon in dialogue

United Kingdom//ˈkɒmplɪmənt//
United States//ˈkɑmpləmənt//

An expression of praise, congratulation, or respect.

noun

1
An expression of praise, congratulation, or respect.
pay someone a compliment
[…] I met him With customary compliment; when he, Wafting his eyes to the contrary and falling A lip of much contempt, speeds from me and So leaves me to consider what is breeding That changeth thus his manners.
[...] what honour that, but tedious waste of time, to sit and hear So many hollow compliments and lies, Outlandish flatteries?
Virtue indeed meets many a rhiming friend, And many a compliment politely penn’d,
2
Complimentary language; courtesy, flattery.
He told the Captain, He was heartily sorry for his Misfortunes; tho’ in my Opinion that was nothing but a Compliment: For, as I found afterwards, he was more brutish, and dishonest, than most of the other Kings on the Island […]
This accomplished man condescended to think of a young girl, and take the pains to talk to her, not with absurd compliment, but with an appeal to her understanding, and sometimes with instructive correction.
3
Variant of complementMisspelling of complement.

Etymology

Borrowed from French compliment, itself a borrowing of Italian complimento, which in turn is a borrowing from Spanish cumplimiento, from cumplir (“to comply, complete, do what is proper”) + -miento or Latin complēmentum. Doublet of complement. Displaced Old English ġeswǣsnes.

verb

1
To pay a compliment (to someone); to express a favourable opinion (of someone).
[…] She transferr'd the curs'd Advice, / That Monarchs ſhould their inward Soul diſguise, / Diſſemble, and command; be falſe, and wiſe; / By ignominous Arts for ſervile Ends / Should compliment their Foes, and ſhun their Friends.
2
Variant of complementMisspelling of complement.

Etymology

Borrowed from French complimenter, from compliment + -er (verb-forming suffix).

Forms

plural: compliments
past tense: complimented
past participle: complimented
present participle: complimenting
third person singular: compliments

complicate · To make complex; to modify so as to make something intricate…complicated · Difficult or convoluted.complication · The act or process of complicating.

compliment · An expression of praise, congratulation, or respect.

complimentary · In the nature of a compliment.compliments · Good wishes.comply · To yield assent; to accord; to acquiesce, agree, consent; to…

The neighbouring pages — Alphabetical order follows the rules of the language, not byte values: an accent decides only between two otherwise identical words, and Spanish files Ñ as a letter of its own.