compliment/complement

Compliment or complement? It's an interesting pair of words, don't you think?

If you tell your husband, wife, or significant other that his or her dinner didn't suck tonight, that wouldn't be very nice; therefore, that's not much of a compliment. Telling her she looks good, telling him he is a master with a crescent wrench, or telling her she plays the harp well are all nice compliments. When you want to be nice, this is the form to use.

Complement is used when one person or thing has a characteristic that another doesn't, but the two together make more of a whole. Huh? Calm down. Let me give you an example.

If you're a master macaroni and cheese maker but aren't exceptionally neat, and he or she loves to load the dishwasher, those two actions complement each other.

You're a great athlete but you're significant other isn't. He or she loves to watch sports, however. That's a perfect complement. Is it clear now? If so, compliments are always appreciated.