A compliment that can easily be mistaken for an insult OR a compliment that is intended to be an insult. Usually said in a sarcastic tone and uses one's positve attributes to patronize and or demeen.
When someone gives you a compliment that can be mistaken for an insult or is intertwined with an insult. Usually, the person who gets the compliminsult will say thank you, but later will wonder if the compliminsult was meant meanly or nicely. Not to be confused withconstructive criticism, in which the person wants to help the receiver improve him/herself.
-You're not as ugly as you used to be!
-You're so tall! Now all you need is some coordination and you could be the next Michael Jordan!
-Wow, that plastic surgery did wonders for you! Now all you need is a little nip tuck around the belly and youll be ready for swimsuit season!
- Person 1: Your recent weight gain really suits you!
Person 2: Uhm. Thanks for the compliment...or was that an insult?...wait a second! Why did you just give me a compliminsult?!?
a statement which on the surface seems to be a compliment, but has an insult buried in the middle of it ... it must consist of three parts: the initial compliment, to put the listener at ease ... the second part slips in an insult, catching the listener off-guard ... and the third part closes with another compliment, leaving the listener a little confused and wondering what just happened
"You look very nice today. That's a hideous shade of green, but it looks pretty good on you." ... an insult, buried between two compliments, is a complinsultment