complicated

adjective

com·​pli·​cat·​ed ˈkäm-plə-ˌkā-təd 

1

: consisting of parts intricately combined

a complicated recipe

complicated machinery

2

: difficult to analyze, understand, or explain

a complicated issue

his absurdly complicated life

complicatedly adverb

complicatedness noun

Synonyms

• baroque
• byzantine
• complex
• complicate
• convoluted
• daedal
• elaborate
• intricate
• involute
• involved
• knotty
• labyrinthian
• labyrinthine
• sophisticated
• tangled

Choose the Right Synonym for complicated

complex, complicated, intricate, involved, knotty mean having confusingly interrelated parts.

complex suggests the unavoidable result of a necessary combining and does not imply a fault or failure.

a complex recipe

complicated applies to what offers great difficulty in understanding, solving, or explaining.

complicated legal procedures

intricate suggests such interlacing of parts as to make it nearly impossible to follow or grasp them separately.

an intricate web of deceit

involved implies extreme complication and often disorder.

a rambling, involved explanation

knotty suggests complication and entanglement that make solution or understanding improbable.

knotty ethical questions

Examples of complicated in a Sentence

The game's rules are too complicated.

The machine has a complicated design.

Recent Examples on the Web

Their final conflict goes down on Silver’s yacht in the middle of the open water, as Silver ridicules Kreese for his complicated relationship with Johnny. —Nick Caruso, TVLine, 15 Feb. 2025

Construed as a pedagogical exercise more than entertainment, the film offers a deep reading into the complicated plurality of the populace that constitutes nations such as Germany. —Ritesh Mehta, IndieWire, 15 Feb. 2025

The new president and the new Captain America are both allies and adversaries, a dynamic that gets complicated amid what amounts to a Marvel-scale conspiracy thriller. —Will Harris, EW.com, 14 Feb. 2025

The job has gotten more complicated, however, since Donald Trump arrived on the national political scene, beginning with Michaels’s decision to let Trump host in 2015. —Maureen Dowd, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

from past participle of complicate entry 1

First Known Use

1656, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for complicated

• abdicated
• abrogated
• acclimated
• activated
• actuated
• adumbrated
• advocated
• aggravated
• aggregated
• agitated
• allocated
• alternated

Kids Definition

complicated

adjective

com·​pli·​cat·​ed ˈkäm-plə-ˌkāt-əd 

1

: consisting of many combined parts

complicated machinery

2

: difficult to analyze, understand, or explain : complex

complicatedly adverb

complicatedness noun

Medical Definition

complicated

adjective

com·​pli·​cat·​ed

of a bone fracture

: characterized by injury to nearby parts