Complimentary

This is one of my favorite examples ever. A person chose to leave this note to the editor of his work (me):


I know I used both "complimentary" and "complementary" in the descriptions. I intentionally used the latter when I wanted to convey the idea that one item adds to another, making it complete. I used the former when I wanted to indicate that one item made another item look better.


This would be a perfectly acceptable explanation if it weren't wrong. Unfortunately, a brief explanation of your intentions cannot change the meaning of a word. To recap, this is what he said:


Complimentary: one item makes another item better
Complementary: one item makes another item complete


So "complementary" is some kind of superlative form of "complimentary"? Is that what I'm supposed to understand?


I like that outfit better. It really compliments your eyes.
I like the orange jumpsuit best. It really complements your felonious personality.


Those sentences make sense under the stupid logic of this person's world. 


Of course, "compliment" and "complement" are two different words with different meanings. Here are the real meanings of the words:


Compliment: to say something nice about someone or something
Complement: to make something better or complete


Observe:


I complimented her on her red shirt. It really complements her orange pants.


Translation:


I told her I like her red shirt. It really goes well with her orange pants.


See the difference? An outfit cannot compliment you. Outfits do not talk. If your outfit is talking to you, you should not be reading this blog. You have much bigger problems than a superiority complex that allows you to change the meaning of words as you see fit.