compliment

English

Etymology

Borrowed from French compliment, itself a borrowing of Italian complimento, which in turn is a borrowing from Spanish cumplimiento. Doublet of complement.

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈkɑmpləmənt/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈkɒmplɪmənt/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Homophone: complement

Noun

compliment (plural compliments)

1. An expression of praise, congratulation, encouragement, or respect.
   • c. 1610, William Shakespeare, The Winter’s Tale, Act I, Scene 2,^[1]

     […] I met him

     With customary compliment; when he,

     Wafting his eyes to the contrary and falling

     A lip of much contempt, speeds from me and

     So leaves me to consider what is breeding

     That changeth thus his manners.

   • 1671, John Milton, Paradise Regained, London: T. Longman et al., 1796, Book 4, p. 65,^[2]

     […] what honour that,

     but tedious waste of time, to sit and hear

     So many hollow compliments and lies,

     Outlandish flatteries?

   • 1782, William Cowper, “Table Talk” in Poems, London: J. Johnson, p. 37,^[3]

     Virtue indeed meets many a rhiming friend,

     And many a compliment politely penn’d,

2. (uncountable) Complimentary language; courtesy, flattery.
   • 1743, Robert Drury, The Pleasant, and Surprizing Adventures of Mr. Robert Drury, during his Fifteen Years Captivity on the Island of Madagascar, London, p. 25,^[4]

     He told the Captain, He was heartily sorry for his Misfortunes; tho’ in my Opinion that was nothing but a Compliment: For, as I found afterwards, he was more brutish, and dishonest, than most of the other Kings on the Island […]

   • 1871–72, George Eliot, Middlemarch, Chapter 3

     This accomplished man condescended to think of a young girl, and take the pains to talk to her, not with absurd compliment, but with an appeal to her understanding, and sometimes with instructive correction.

3. Misspelling of complement.

Synonyms

• See Wikisaurus:praise

Antonyms

• insult

Derived terms

Terms derived from compliment (noun)

• backhanded compliment

• left-handed compliment

• with compliments

Translations

expression of praise, congratulation or encouragement

• Arabic: مُجَامِلَة‏‎ f (mujāmila)

  Hijazi Arabic: مَدْحَة‏‎ f (madḥa), مُجامَلة‏‎ f (mujāmala)

• Armenian: հաճոյախոսություն (hy) (hačoyaxosutʿyun), կոմպլիմենտ (hy) (kompliment)
• Bulgarian: похвала (bg) f (pohvala), любезност (bg) f (ljubeznost), комплимент (bg) m (kompliment)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 稱讚 (zh), 称赞 (zh) (chēngzàn), 道賀 (zh), 道贺 (zh) (dàohè)

• Czech: poklona f, kompliment (cs) m
• Danish: kompliment c
• Dutch: compliment (nl)
• Finnish: kohteliaisuus (fi), kohteliaisuudenosoitus
• French: compliment (fr) m
• German: Kompliment (de) n, Lob (de) n, Anerkennung (de) f, Achtungsbezeugung f, Ehrenbezeigung f
• Greek: φιλοφρόνηση (el) f (filofrónisi)
• Hebrew: מחמאה‏‎ (he) f (makhma'á)
• Hindi: तारीफ़ f (tārīf), प्रशंसा (hi) f (praśansā)
• Hungarian: bók (hu)

• Italian: complimento (it) m
• Japanese: お世辞 (おせじ, oseji)
• Korean: please add this translation if you can
• Norwegian Bokmål: komplimang m
• Polish: komplement (pl) m, pochwała (pl) f, pochlebstwo (pl) n
• Portuguese: elogio (pt) m
• Romanian: compliment (ro) n
• Russian: комплиме́нт (ru) m (komplimént), похвала́ (ru) f (poxvalá), любе́зность (ru) f (ljubéznostʹ)
• Sanskrit: चाटुक्ति f (cāṭukti), चाटु (sa) m (cāṭu)
• Spanish: cumplido (es) m
• Swedish: komplimang (sv) c
• Thai: คำชม
• Turkish: övgü (tr), iltifat (tr)
• Ukrainian: компліме́нт (uk) (komplimént), похвала́ (poxvalá), люб'я́зність (ljubʺjáznistʹ)
• Vietnamese: lời khen (vi)

courtesy, flattery

• Finnish: kohteliaisuus (fi); imartelu (fi) (flattery)

• German: Kompliment (de) n, Schmeichelei (de) f, Höflichkeitsbezeigung f, Höflichkeitsbezeugung f

Verb

compliment (third-person singular simple present compliments, present participle complimenting, simple past and past participle complimented)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To pay a compliment (to); to express a favorable opinion (of).
   • Prior

     Monarchs should their inward soul disguise; […] / Should compliment their foes and shun their friends.

2. Misspelling of complement.

Antonyms

• insult

See also

• complement

Translations

to pay a compliment; to express a favorable opinion

• Arabic: please add this translation if you can
• Armenian: հաճոյախոսել (hy) (hačoyaxosel), կոմպլիմենտ անել (kompliment anel)
• Bulgarian: хваля (bg) (hvalja), правя комплимент (pravja kompliment)
• Czech: please add this translation if you can
• Danish: komplimentere
• Dutch: complimenteren (nl), een compliment geven
• Finnish: lausua kohteliaisuus
• French: complimenter (fr), faire un compliment, faire des compliments
• German: beglückwünschen (de), ein Kompliment machen, loben (de), komplimentieren (de)
• Greek: κολακεύω (el) (kolakévo), επαινώ (el) (epainó), παινεύω (el) (painévo)
• Hebrew: החמיא‏‎ (hekhmí)

• Hindi: please add this translation if you can
• Hungarian: bókol (hu)
• Italian: complimentarsi
• Norwegian: komplimentere (no), gi kompliment
• Portuguese: elogiar (pt)
• Russian: говори́ть комплиме́нты (govorítʹ kompliménty)
• Spanish: felicitar (es)
• Swedish: ge en komplimang, komplimentera (sv)
• Thai: please add this translation if you can
• Turkish: iltifat etmek
• Vietnamese: please add this translation if you can

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Catalan

Etymology

From complir. Cf. also Spanish cumplimiento, Latin complementum.

Noun

compliment m (plural compliments)

1. compliment

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Dutch

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: com‧pli‧ment
• Rhymes: -ɛnt

Etymology

From French compliment, from Italian complimento.

Noun

compliment n (plural complimenten, diminutive complimentje n)

1. compliment

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French

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian complimento, itself a borrowing from Spanish cumplimiento.

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

compliment m (plural compliments)

1. compliment (positive comment)

Derived terms

• complimenter

References

• “compliment” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).