Complexion is the natural colour and condition of the skin on a person's face: a pale complexion, a healthy complexion. It does not describe body type: for that, English uses build, for example a slim build or a stocky build. For the shape of someone's body, especially a woman's, people say figure.
complexion: will you get the meaning right?
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have + a pale/fair/dark/olive + complexion; a clear/healthy + complexion; a slim/athletic/stocky + build (body type, not complexion)
- She has a very fair complexion, so she never goes to the beach without sun cream.
- After a week of fresh air and proper sleep, his complexion looked much healthier.
- The shop assistant helped me choose a foundation that matched my complexion.
What changed
First versionHe's tall and has an athletic complexion.
RevisionHe's tall and has an athletic build.
In some languages, a word that looks like complexion describes body type, so an athletic complexion can seem like a natural phrase. In English, though, it would describe an athletic colour of the face. The word for body type is build: an athletic build, a medium build. You can also say it more simply: He's tall and athletic.
Complexion has a second, more formal meaning: the general character of a situation. This news puts a different complexion on things means that the news changes the situation. In everyday speech, people usually just say skin: She has lovely skin.
Your turn
Emma gets sunburnt in twenty minutes because she has a very pale ___.
Show the answer
complexion — Emma gets sunburnt quickly because her skin is very light, and the colour of facial skin is described with complexion. Build refers to body type, and a body type cannot be pale.
Describe someone you know for a friend who is going to meet them at the station. Mention their build and the colour of their skin.
My uncle has a stocky build and a dark complexion, and he'll be wearing a blue jacket.
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