complexion

Syllables: com·plex·ion/kəmˈplɛkʃən/

complexion noun: the quality, colour, or appearance of the skin on the face.

Noun

complexion (plural complexions)

The quality, colour, or appearance of the skin on the face.
- a rugged complexion
- a sunburnt complexion
(figuratively) The outward appearance of something.
- 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.1910, Bernard Capes, Why Did He Do It?, page 207
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.1726 October 28, [Jonathan Swift], Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. […] [Gulliver’s Travels], volume I, London: […] Benj[amin] Motte, […], →OCLC, part I (A Voyage to Lilliput)
- But the purely marginal jottings, done with no eye to the Memorandum Book, have a distinct complexion, and not only a distinct purpose, but none at all; this it is which imparts to them a value.1844, E. A. Poe, Marginalia
(obsolete) The combination of humours making up one's physiological "temperament", being either hot or cold, and moist or dry.
- 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 […]1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book III, Canto X”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC
- “Indeed, sir,” answered the lady, with some warmth, “I cannot think there is anything easier than to cheat an old woman with a profession of love, when her complexion is amorous; and, though she is my aunt, I must say there never was a more liquorish one than her ladyship. […]1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC
(especially, loanword) An arrangement.
- 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.1909, Ludwig Boltzmann, translated by Kim Sharp and Franz Matschinsky

Verb

complexion (third-person singular simple present complexions, present participle complexioning, simple past and past participle complexioned)

(transitive) To give a colour to.
- 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.2003, Leland Krauth, Mark Twain & Company: Six Literary Relations, page 118

complexion meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

complexion in Hindi

complexion: रंगत raṅgat, रंग raṅg

complexion in Tamil

இயல் நிறம், தோற்றம், மேனி வண்ணம், உடல் கட்டமைப்பு, முகத்தோல்நிறம், சிக்கலயன்

complexion in Marathi

complexion: रंग raṅga, वर्ण varṇa

complexion in Urdu

complexion: رنگت raṅgat

More languagesFewer languages

complexion in Telugu: వర్ణము varṇamu
complexion in Malayalam: ശരീരപ്രകൃതി, നിറം, സ്വഭാവം, വർണം
complexion in Kannada: ಸಹಜ ವರ್ಣ, ಸಹಜ ಬಣ್ಣ, ಮುಖದ ಬಣ್ಣ, ಬಣ್ಣ
complexion in Punjabi: رنگ raṉg, ਰੰਗ raṅg
complexion in Assamese: বৰণ boron
complexion in Tagalog: kulay ng balat, kutis
complexion in Arabic: بَشْرَة bašra
complexion in Malay: warna kulit
complexion in Indonesian: warna kulit muka
complexion in Vietnamese: nước da

Examples of complexion in a sentence

Prince of Morocco: Mislike me not for my complexion, / The shadow’d livery of the burnish’d sun, / To whom I am a neighbour, and near bred. […]c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies...
"I shall do nothing for the next week but study my costume and complexion," said she.1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “Asking for an Invitation”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume III, London: Henry...
In complexion fair, and with blue or gray eyes, he was tall as any Viking, as broad in the shoulder.1910, Emerson Hough, chapter I, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
Nurse Cramer had a cute nose and a radiant, blooming complexion dotted with fetching sprays of adorable freckles that Yossarian detested.1961 November 10, Joseph Heller, “The Soldier in White”, in Catch-22 […], New York, N.Y.: Simon and Schuster, →OCLC, page 171:

All 40 example sentences with complexion

Forms of complexion

Noun
plural	complexions
alternative form (obsolete)	complection
Verb
third-person singular present	complexions
present participle	complexioning
past participle	complexioned
past	complexioned

Plural of complexion: complexions

Origin of complexion

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”).

Words formed from complexion

Words that rhyme with complexion

44 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about complexion

What does complexion mean?: Complexion means the quality, colour, or appearance of the skin on the face.
What is complexion in Hindi?: Complexion in Hindi is रंगत (raṅgat), रंग (raṅg). See Complexion meaning in Hindi.
How do you use complexion in a sentence?: Prince of Morocco: Mislike me not for my complexion, / The shadow’d livery of the burnish’d sun, / To whom I am a neighbour, and near bred. […]
What part of speech is complexion?: Complexion can be a noun or a verb.
How do you pronounce complexion?: Complexion is pronounced /kəmˈplɛkʃən/ (US).
What is the plural of complexion?: The plural of complexion is complexions.

Words near complexion in the dictionary

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-complexion.ogg.

Cite this entry: “complexion.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/complexion. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.