complex suggests the unavoidable result of a necessary combining and does not imply a fault or failure.
a complex recipe
complicated applies to what offers great difficulty in understanding, solving, or explaining.
complicated legal procedures
intricate suggests such interlacing of parts as to make it nearly impossible to follow or grasp them separately.
an intricate web of deceit
involved implies extreme complication and often disorder.
a rambling, involved explanation
knotty suggests complication and entanglement that make solution or understanding improbable.
knotty ethical questions
Example Sentences
The game's rules are too complicated. The machine has a complicated design.
Recent Examples on the WebBut revisiting an existing story can sometimes be more complicated. Maya Chung, The Atlantic, 9 Sep. 2022 Zone blocking is more complicated — to explain and to execute. Jim Mcbride, BostonGlobe.com, 9 Sep. 2022 More complicated will be a division of the firm’s big and lucrative tax unit, parts of which will go to both firms, and other practice areas. Jean Eaglesham, WSJ, 8 Sep. 2022 Bias said the impact on agencies like his are more complicated than the number of animals taken in and adopted out. Ed Stannard, Hartford Courant, 6 Sep. 2022 The pedal system shouldn’t need much maintenance but might be more complicated to fix than the Hobie MirageDrive. Patrick Connolly, Orlando Sentinel, 4 Sep. 2022 The mass of the melting glaciers is a bit more complicated.WIRED, 4 Sep. 2022 Republicans privately say the reality is more complicated than most candidates are eager to admit. Isaac Arnsdorf, Michael Scherer And Josh Dawsey, Anchorage Daily News, 3 Sep. 2022 Because this fling was a lot more sensually complicated than other office flings. Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 1 Sep. 2022 See More