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complected

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(kəm plek′tid)

☆

adjective

complexioned

Origin: altered < complexioned

See complected in American Heritage Dictionary 4

adjective
Informal

Marked by or having a particular facial complexion. Often used in combination: “A white-haired and ruddy-complected priest stood on the deck of one of the trawlers” (New York Times).

Origin:

Origin: Back-formation from complection

Origin: , variant of complexion

Usage Note: Complected has a long history in American folk speech, showing up, for example, in 1806 in the journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition: “[The Indians] are . . . reather lighter complected . . . than the Indians of the Missouri” (Meriwether Lewis). In 1915 its reported use in west Texas extended its semantic domain beyond skin color to general appearance: “a fat-complected man.”

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