Complex, a.
Etymology: [L. complexus, p. p. of complecti to entwine around, comprise; com- + plectere to twist, akin to plicare to fold. See Plait, n.]
1. Composed of two or more parts; composite; not simple; as, a complex being; a complex idea. Ideas thus made up of several simple ones put together, I call complex; such as beauty, gratitude, a man, an army, the universe. Locke.
2. Involving many parts; complicated; intricate. When the actual motions of the heavens are calculated in the best possible way, the process is difficult and complex. Whewell. Complex fraction. See Fraction. -- Complex number (Math.), in the theory of numbers, an expression of the form a + bsq. root-1, when a and b are ordinary integers.
Syn. -- See Intricate.
1 other Webster entry under this spelling
Complex, n.
Assemblage of related things; colletion; complication. This parable of the wedding supper comprehends in it the whole complex of all the blessings and privileges exhibited by the gospel. South. Complex of lines (Geom.), all the possible straight lines in space being considered, the entire system of lines which satisfy a single relation constitute a complex; as, all the lines which meet a given curve make up a complex. The lines which satisfy two relations constitute a congruency of lines; as, the entire system of lines, each one of which meets two given surfaces, is a congruency.
Shades of meaning
That is complex which is made up of several connected parts. That is compound in which the parts are not merely connected, but fused, or otherwise combined into a single substance. In a composite object the different parts have less of unity than in that which is complex or compound, but maintain their distinct individuality. In a heterogeneous body unlike parts or particles are intermingled, often without apparent order or plan. Conglomerate (literally, globed together) is said of a confused mingling of masses or lumps of various substances. The New England pudding-stone is a conglomerate rock. In a complex object the arrangement and relation of parts may be perfectly clear; in a complicated mechanism the parts are so numerous, or so combined, that the mind can not readily grasp their mutual relations; in an intricate arrangement the parts are so intertwined that it is difficult to follow their windings; things are involved which are rolled together so as not to be easily separated, either in thought or in fact; things which are tangled or entangled mutually hold and draw upon each other. The conception of a material object is usually complex, involving form, color, size, and other elements; a clock is a complicated mechanism; the Gordian knot was intricate; the twining serpents of the Laocoon are involved. We speak of an abstruse statement, a complex conception, a confused heap, a heterogeneous mass, a tangled skein, an intricate problem; of composite architecture, an involved sentence; of the complicated or intricate accounts of a great business, the entangled accounts of an incompetent or dishonest bookkeeper.