confessional

adjective

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

confessionalism

kən-ˈfe-sh(ə-)nə-ˌli-zəm 

noun

confessionalist

kən-ˈfe-sh(ə-)nə-list 

noun

confessionally

kən-ˈfe-sh(ə-)nə-lē 

adverb

Examples of confessional in a Sentence

confessional interviews of famous actors

Recent Examples on the Web

Amanda is talking about her friendships with Ciara and West in confessional when the background suddenly starts to wobble, the lights flicker, and her outfit changes. —Brian Moylan, Vulture, 3 June 2026

Shawn's Ray Wilkins, meanwhile, shows back up in his old flame Brenda's life during a breathtakingly lurid Sinners send-up that takes the form of a confessional sermon in a Southern church. —Entertainment Weekly, 2 June 2026

Shange’s rainbow assemblage manages to be confrontational and conciliatory through a confessional accumulation that collapses poetry, movement, and ritual into a single and ever-changing event. —Literary Hub, 29 May 2026

That is where the device of the confessional letter came in. —Katie Campione, Deadline, 26 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin confessiōnālis "constituting or used for a confession" — more at confessional entry 1

First Known Use

1684, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for confessional

• compressional
• concessional
• congressional
• obsessional
• processional
• professional
• recessional
• successional
• interprofessional
• paraprofessional
• semiprofessional
• nonprofessional

Kids Definition

confessional

noun

con·​fes·​sion·​al

kən-ˈfesh-(ə-)nəl

1

: the enclosed place in which a priest sits and hears confessions

2

: the practice of confessing to a priest