“The hotel offered a complementary breakfast.”
Confusables Entry 1151 / 1605 60-second read
Complimentary vs. Complementary
Free or expressing praise versus completing or going well together.
The comparisoni
“The hotel offered a complimentary breakfast. ("Complementary" means completing.)”
The ruleii
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COMPLIMENTARY = free / praising. COMPLEMENTARY = completing.
COMPLIMENTARY (with I, as in "compliment") means given free or expressing praise. COMPLEMENTARY (with E, as in "complete") means working together or completing.
Memory aidiii
Remember it like this
FreE = complEmentary? No — flip that. Free = complImentary (like I, I got it).