1
as in to admit
to accept the truth or existence of (something) usually reluctantly
he fessed up to breaking the antique vase only after his guilt was obvious
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to confess
to make an acknowledgment of something unpleasant as true or valid
at first he denied everything, but eventually he realized that he had no choice but to fess up
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fess (up)
Verb
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Estrangement is far more common than most admit—and often cloaked in shame or silence.—
Avivah Wittenberg-Cox, Forbes.com, 3 Apr. 2025
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Trump, ahead of Wednesday's announcement, had admitted there could be some short-term pain.—
Verb
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Brian Tyree Henry confessed to breaking his own cardinal rule of not returning to television in order to star in Apple TV+’s crime drama Dope Thief.—
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Ninety percent of British women and nonbinary people polled in 2020 confessed to sometimes using filters before posting selfies, and 85 percent to using external editing software such as FaceTune to tweak pictures of themselves.—
Verb
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Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Friday acknowledged that Trump’s tariffs, which were significantly more aggressive than the central bank had expected, would drive prices higher and slow down the economy.—
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For much of the film, Maddox, who is played by Jonathan Majors, does not seem capable of acknowledging his capacity for violence.—
Verb
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Deputy Latah County Prosecutor Ashley Jennings also flat out denied Taylor's accusations that prosecutors were slow-walking discovery and said everything the defense has asked for has been provided, a point that Taylor conceded in front of the judge.—
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His interrogator conceded that the police must have gotten the wrong guy and released him within weeks.—
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Cite this Entry
“Fess (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fess%20%28up%29. Accessed 15 Apr. 2025.
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