confess

verb

con·​fess kən-ˈfes How to pronounce confess (audio)
confessed; confessing; confesses
Synonyms of confessnext

transitive verb

1
: to tell or make known (something, such as something wrong or damaging to oneself) : admit
he confessed his guilt
2
a
: to acknowledge (sin) to God or to a priest
b
: to receive the confession of (a penitent)
3
: to declare faith in or adherence to : profess
4
: to give evidence of
Breeze, bird, and flower confess the hour …—Sir Walter Scott

intransitive verb

1
a
: to disclose one's faults
specifically : to unburden one's sins or the state of one's conscience to God or to a priest
b
: to hear a confession
2
: admit, own
confess to a crime
confessable
kən-ˈfe-sə-bəl How to pronounce confess (audio)
adjective

Synonyms

See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus 
Choose the Right Synonym for confess

acknowledge, admit, own, avow, confess mean to disclose against one's will or inclination.

acknowledge implies the disclosing of something that has been or might be concealed.

acknowledged an earlier peccadillo

admit implies reluctance to disclose, grant, or concede and refers usually to facts rather than their implications.

admitted the project was over budget

own implies acknowledging something in close relation to oneself.

must own I know little about computers

avow implies boldly declaring, often in the face of hostility, what one might be expected to be silent about.

avowed that he was a revolutionary

confess may apply to an admission of a weakness, failure, omission, or guilt.

confessed a weakness for sweets

Examples of confess in a Sentence

He confessed after being questioned for many hours. He willingly confessed his crime. I have to confess that I was afraid at first. I confessed my sins to the priest.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
To add a layer, Kitty’s former nemesis and reluctant roommate Min Ho (Sang Heon Lee) confessed his feelings for her. —Nicole Fell, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Nov. 2024 Smith ultimately confessed to letting her car roll down a boat ramp and into the lake. —CBS News, 20 Nov. 2024 Hoping that Brendan would find it in his heart to spare her husband’s life, and knowing that the IRA was bound to discover his double-identity sooner rather than later, Kathleen confesses to Brendan. —Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 14 Nov. 2024 Smith confessed to letting her car roll down a boat ramp into the lake. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 6 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for confess 

Word History

Etymology

Middle English confessen "to admit, confess, (of a priest) hear a confession," borrowed from Anglo-French confesser (also continental Old French), derivative of confés "confessed, shriven," going back to Latin confessus, past participle of confiteor, confitērī "to admit (a fact, the truth of a statement or charge), reveal," from con- con- + fateor, fatērī "to accept as true, acknowledge, profess," probably a verbal derivative based on Indo-European *bhh2-to- "spoken" or *bhh2-t- "who speaks," from the verbal base *bheh2- "speak, say," whence also Latin for, fārī "to speak, say" — more at ban entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of confess was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near confess

Confervoideae

confess

confessant

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Confess.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/confess. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.

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Kids Definition

confess

verb
con·​fess kən-ˈfes How to pronounce confess (audio)
1
: to make known (as something wrong)
2
a
: to admit one's sins to God or to a priest
b
: to hear the confession of
the priest confessed the penitents

Legal Definition

confess

transitive verb
con·​fess kən-ˈfes How to pronounce confess (audio)
: to admit (as a charge or allegation) as true, proven, or valid
unless you answer, the petition shall be taken as confessed

intransitive verb

: to make a confession
confessor
kən-ˈfe-sər How to pronounce confess (audio)
noun

More from Merriam-Webster on confess

Nglish: Translation of confess for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of confess for Arabic Speakers

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