complementary medicine

/ˌkɒm.pləˌmɛn.t(ə)ɹiː ˈmɛd.ɪ.sɪn/

//ˌkɒm.pləˌmɛn.t(ə)ɹiː ˈmɛd.ɪ.sɪn// noun

"complementary-medicine" is a 21-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“complementary medicine” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
22
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Any of several therapies that complement (augment) scientific medical practices with those of alternative medicine such as acupuncture or homeopathy.

Corpus desk

Index EN-complementary-medicine · complementary medicine · English

complementary medicine · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 22 letters
  • VOW-9 9 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "C" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for complementary medicine
PropertyValue
Headwordcomplementary medicine
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌkɒm.pləˌmɛn.t(ə)ɹiː ˈmɛd.ɪ.sɪn/
Letters22
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “complementary medicine” sits in English frequency

complementary medicine falls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

complementary medicine is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌkɒm.pləˌmɛn.t(ə)ɹiː ˈmɛd.ɪ.sɪn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Any of several therapies that complement (augment) scientific medical practices with those of alternative medicine such as acupuncture or homeopathy.".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for complementary medicine, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct English form is complementary medicine, spelled C-O-M-P-L-E-M-E-N-T-A-R-Y- -M-E-D-I-C-I-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any of several therapies that complement (augment) scientific medical practices with those of alternative medicine such as acupuncture or homeopathy.

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "complementary medicine"?
"complementary medicine" is spelled C-O-M-P-L-E-M-E-N-T-A-R-Y- -M-E-D-I-C-I-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌkɒm.pləˌmɛn.t(ə)ɹiː ˈmɛd.ɪ.sɪn/.
What does "complementary medicine" mean?
As a noun, "complementary medicine" means: Any of several therapies that complement (augment) scientific medical practices with those of alternative medicine such as acupuncture or homeopathy.
How do you pronounce "complementary medicine"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "complementary medicine" is /ˌkɒm.pləˌmɛn.t(ə)ɹiː ˈmɛd.ɪ.sɪn/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "complementary medicine" come from?
"complementary medicine" is a English word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list