complication

/ˈkɑmpləˌkeɪʃən/

/kɒmplɪˈkeɪʃɪn/

Other forms: complications

A complication is a difficult circumstance or a confused condition, like the complication you cause when you invite a dozen strangers to Thanksgiving dinner.

Complications can range from the one your teacher faces when you lose your pet snake in the classroom to the complications that occur during surgery, making recovery more difficult. The plot of your favorite book probably involves several complications for the characters, events or situations that make the ending uncertain or create a dilemma. Complication comes from the Latin complicāre, "to fold together," which makes sense since something with many folds is more complicated than something that's flat.

Definitions of complication

1. noun

   the act or process of complicating
   type of:

   hinderance, hindrance, interference

   the act of hindering or obstructing or impeding
2. noun

   a situation or condition that is complex or confused
   “her coming was a serious complication”

   type of:

   situation, state of affairs

   the general state of things; the combination of circumstances at a given time
3. noun

   a development that complicates a situation
   synonyms: ramification

   type of:

   development

   a recent event that has some relevance for the present situation
4. noun

   puzzling complexity
   synonyms: complicatedness, knottiness, tortuousness

   type of:

   complexity, complexness

   the quality of being intricate and compounded
5. noun

   any disease or disorder that occurs during the course of (or because of) another disease
   “bed sores are a common complication in cases of paralysis”

   type of:

   disease

   an impairment of health or a condition of abnormal functioning