What does "complexion" mean?
The quality, colour, or appearance of the skin on the face.
Complexion
/kəmˈplɛkʃən/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The quality, colour, or appearance of the skin on the face.
- Grammar: complexion is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: skin color, achromatism, air, ambiversion.
- Useful contrasts: depigmentation, discord, instability.
- Usage evidence: She's got a fair complexion while her brother is very dark.
How to use "complexion"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "complexion" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "complexion" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "complexion" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "complexion" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "complexion" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "skin color" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "complexion", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The quality, colour, or appearance of the skin on the face.
"a rugged complexion"
- 2 (obsolete) a combination of elements (of dryness and warmth or of the four humors) that was once believed to determine a person's health and temperament wordnet
- 3 The outward appearance of something. figuratively
"It was a little unfortunate that the fib unfibbed gave their consultations something the complexion of that close understanding which exists between penitent and confessor."
- 4 texture and appearance of the skin of the face wordnet
- 5 Outlook, attitude, or point of view.
"That minister was galbet, or admiral of the realm, very much in his master’s confidence, and a person well versed in affairs, but of a morose and sour complexion."
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 the coloring of a person's face wordnet
- 7 The combination of humours making up one's physiological "temperament", being either hot or cold, and moist or dry. obsolete
"Ne ever is he wont on ought to feed / But todes and frogs, his pasture poysonous, / Which in his cold complexion doe breed / A filthy blood […]"
- 8 a point of view or general attitude or inclination wordnet
- 9 An arrangement. especially
"1909, Ludwig Boltzmann, translated by Kim Sharp and Franz Matschinsky Second there is the level at which the energy or velocity components of each molecule are specified. He calls this a Komplexion, which we translate literally as complexion."
- 10 a combination that results from coupling or interlinking wordnet
Verb
- 1 To give a colour to. transitive
"From the pale refinement of her genteel heroine to the sallow complexioning of poor white trash, Stowe colors her narrative with the hues of the body."
- 2 give a certain color to wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"She's got a fair complexion while her brother is very dark."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "complexion"?
Common synonyms include: skin color, achromatism, air, ambiversion, aspect, bearing.
How do you use "complexion" in a sentence?
She's got a fair complexion while her brother is very dark.
How do you pronounce "complexion"?
Pronounced /kəmˈplɛkʃən/.
Etymology
From Middle English complexion (“temperament”), from Old French complexion (French complexion), from Medieval Latin complexiō (“complexion, constitution”), from complector, past participle complexus (“to entwine, encompass”).