Standard Lemma guide

complexity

noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /kəmˈplɛk.sɪ.ti/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: K AH0 M P L EH1 K S AH0 T IY0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
  • CMU ARPABET 2: K AH0 M P L EH1 K S IH0 T IY0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

That which is and renders complex; intricacy; complication.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

the quality of being intricate and compounded

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • he enjoyed the complexity of modern computers

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: complexness

Antonyms: simplicity

Broader terms: quality

Narrower terms: complicatedness, complication, knottiness, tortuousness, elaborateness, elaboration, intricacy, involution, tapestry, trickiness

History

Etymology

From complex + -ity. Partially displaced native English manifoldness.

Across languages

Translations

91 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: تَعْقِيد (taʕqīd) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Armenian: բարդություն (bardutʻyun) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Bulgarian: сложност (složnost) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Bulgarian: обърканост (obǎrkanost) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Catalan: complexitat — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Chinese Mandarin: 複雜性 /复杂性 (fùzáxìng) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Czech: složitost — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Dutch: ingewikkeldheid — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Dutch: complexiteit — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Estonian: keerulisus — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Finnish: monimutkaisuus — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Finnish: mutkikkuus — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • French: complexité — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Galician: complexidade — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Georgian: სირთულე (sirtule) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Georgian: ჩახლართულობა (čaxlartuloba) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Georgian: კომპლექსურობა (ḳomṗleksuroba) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • German: Kompliziertheit — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • German: Komplexität — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Greek: περιπλοκότητα (periplokótita) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Hebrew: מורכבות (murkavut) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Hungarian: bonyolultság — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Hungarian: komplikáltság — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Indonesian: kompleksitas — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Indonesian: kekompleksan — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Indonesian: kerumitan — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Interlingua: complexitate — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Irish: castacht — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Italian: complessità — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Japanese: 複雑さ (fukuzatsusa) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Latin: complexitās — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Latvian: sarežģītība — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Lithuanian: sudėtingumas — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Malay: kerumitan — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Malay: kekompleksan — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Malayalam: സങ്കീർണ്ണത (saṅkīṟṇṇata) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Norwegian Bokmål: kompleksitet — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: kompleksitet — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Old English: maniġfealdnes — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Polish: złożoność — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Polish: zawiłość — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Portuguese: complexidade — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Romanian: complexitate — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Russian: сло́жность (slóžnostʹ) — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Slovak: zložitosť — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Slovene: zapletenost — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Spanish: complejidad — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Swedish: komplexitet — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Turkish: karmaşıklık — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Welsh: cymhlethdod — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Welsh: dryswch — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Welsh: astrusi — the state of being complex; intricacy; entanglement
  • Armenian: բարդություն (bardutʻyun) — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Catalan: complexitat — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Danish: indviklethed — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Danish: kompleksitet — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Dutch: gecompliceerdheid — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Dutch: verwikkeling — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Dutch: complexiteit — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Estonian: keerukus — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Finnish: monimutkaisuus — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Finnish: vaikeus — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Finnish: ongelma — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Finnish: hankaluus — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • French: complexité — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Galician: complexidade — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Georgian: სირთულე (sirtule) — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Georgian: ჩახლართულობა (čaxlartuloba) — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • German: Komplexität — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • German: Schwierigkeit — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • German: Komplikation — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Greek: περιπλοκή (periplokí) — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Hungarian: bonyodalom — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Hungarian: komplikáció — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Italian: complessità — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Latvian: komplicētība — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Lithuanian: painumas — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Malayalam: സങ്കീർണ്ണം (saṅkīṟṇṇaṁ) — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Norwegian: floke — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Norwegian: forvikling — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Old English: maniġfealdnes — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Polish: zawiłość — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Portuguese: complexidade — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Romanian: complexitate — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Russian: сло́жность (slóžnostʹ) — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Slovak: zložitosť — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Slovene: zapletenost — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Spanish: complejidad — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Swedish: komplikation — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Swedish: krånglighet — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
  • Turkish: karmaşık — that which is complex; intricacy; complication
Real reading context

complexity in complete knowledge articles