Complements

Part of speech: noun, verb

Definitions

1. Enhancements serve to complete or improve something else, functioning to highlight or amplify the qualities of an existing element, thereby creating a harmonious whole
2. Additions that enhance are meant to complete another item, bringing out its characteristics while ensuring a balanced integration, thus fostering an improved outcome
3. Things that complete or improve something by making it more effective or attractive

Etymology: The most surprising thing about "complement" is that it is a twin of "compliment", and the two were once interchangeable spellings of the same idea. Both descend from Latin "complēmentum", meaning "that which fills up or completes", formed from the verb "compleō", "to fill up; to complete". The English word "complete" comes from the same Latin verb, so the two are close relatives in English as well. The Latin noun passed into Middle English as "complement", and its sense of filling a gap has never really left it. A ship's complement is the full number of crew needed to fill it, and a set of ingredients or features can be described the same way. Over time the sense of making up a whole gave rise to the sense of a thing that enhances another, which is the meaning in your definition. The verb came later and was formed from the noun, so "to complement" means to supply what is lacking in something else, or to make it look better by contrast.

Synonyms: supplements, enhancements, additions

Antonyms: detracts, reduces