confessional

noun con·fes·sion·al \ kən-ˈfesh-nəl , -ˈfe-shə-nᵊl \

|Updated on: 13 Jun 2018

Examples: confessional in a Sentence

Definition of confessional

1 : a place where a priest hears confessions

2 : the practice of confessing to a priest

See confessional defined for English-language learners

See confessional defined for kids

Recent Examples of confessional from the Web

Nowadays these practices, along with the inter-confessional marriages that were very common before the war, are virtually non-existent.

— vadim ghirda, Fox News, "AP PHOTOS: Bosnian Roma celebrate St. George's Day," 11 May 2018
An Australian inquiry into child abuse recommended in December that the Catholic Church lift its demand of celibacy from clergy and that priests be prosecuted for failing to report evidence of pedophilia heard in the confessional.

— rod mcguirk, BostonGlobe.com, "Australian archbishop steps down after cover-up conviction," 23 May 2018
Some in Congress have also found such caloric confessionals objectionable, calling the mandate another example of government over-reach.

— jenny deam, Houston Chronicle, "No escape: A time of calorie reckoning," 9 May 2018
At the starry Time 100 Gala that night, Brown confirmed to us that she was approached about the Rose confessional show, clarifying she was asked to produce it, rather than co-host.

— Fox News, "Tina Brown wants no part of Charlie Rose's #MeToo redemption series," 26 Apr. 2018
The meeting turned into a confessional, with students going around the table, sharing their fears, wiping away tears.

— gabriel thompson, Longreads, "Coachella, Underground," 12 Apr. 2018
Some, with a hushed confessional tone, have even dared to express doubts on whether this treatment will be effective.

— lisa pawlak, chicagotribune.com, "In a drab waiting room before yet another cancer treatment, a mother ponders the future," 10 Apr. 2018
Santini's solo skit show, My Cosmic Blowout, pushes so far into the confessional and the therapeutic that bits of it sound like self-help affirmations.

— tony adler, Chicago Reader, "My Cosmic Blowout is Analisha Santini's wild and witty confessional," 6 Apr. 2018
And he's later seen crying during an on-camera confessional.

— rose minutaglio, Good Housekeeping, ""Long Island Medium" Theresa Caputo on Life After Her Split From Larry," 5 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'confessional.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of confessional

1727

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

confessional

adjective

Definition of confessional

1 : of, relating to, or being a confession especially of faith

2 a : intimately autobiographical

confessional fiction

b : characterized by unguarded openness or self-revelation

We live in a confessional culture, provoked by social media and the internet and the warmth of the human impulse to share and … commiserate.
—Megan Garber

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