Complementary or complimentary?
complementary is an adjective meaning “Acting as a complement; making up a whole with something else”; complimentary is an adjective meaning “In the nature of a compliment”. They sound the same (/ˌkɒmplɪˈmɛnt(ə)ɹi/). In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) complementary is about 1.6 times as common as complimentary.
What is the difference between complementary and complimentary?
| complementary | complimentary | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | adjective, noun | adjective |
| Meaning | Acting as a complement; making up a whole with something else Of the specific pairings of the bases in DNA and RNA A complementary colour | In the nature of a compliment Free; provided at no charge |
| Example | I'll provide you with some complementary notes to help you study | a complimentary remark |
| Pronunciation | /ˌkɒmplɪˈmɛnt(ə)ɹi/ /ˌkɑmplɪˈmɛnt(ə)ɹi/ | /ˌkɒmplɪˈmɛnt(ə)ɹi/ /ˌkɑmplɪˈmɛnt(ə)ɹi/ |
| In writing | 3.6 times per million words | 2.2 times per million words |
Sources: complementary and complimentary in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of complementary and complimentary
complementary
- 1
Acting as a complement; making up a whole with something else
I'll provide you with some complementary notes to help you study
- 2
A complementary colour
- 3
Of the specific pairings of the bases in DNA and RNA
- 4
An angle which adds with another to equal ninety degrees
- 5
Pertaining to pairs of properties in quantum mechanics that are inversely related to each other, such as speed and position, or energy and time. (See also Heisenberg uncertainty principle.)
complimentary
- 1
In the nature of a compliment
a complimentary remark
- 2
Free; provided at no charge
complimentary drinks
- 3
With respect to the closing of a letter, formal and professional
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, complementary or complimentary?
complementary appears 3.6 times per million words; complimentary 2.2 times per million words.
complementary 3.6 times per million wordscomplimentary 2.2 times per million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How many people search complementary vs complimentary?
“complementary vs complimentary” is searched about 9,900 times a month on Google and 750 on Bing in the United States. Google counts close variants of a query together (“complimentary vs complementary”, “complementary or complimentary”).
Sources: Google Ads keyword data through DataForSEO and Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, the average month from September 2025 to August 2026.