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
Relevance
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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San Diego City Councilmember Jennifer Campbell has admitted violating city record-keeping rules during her 2022 re-election campaign and agreed to pay a $300 fine to resolve the case brought by the San Diego Ethics Commission.—
Jeff McDonald,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
13 Sep. 2025 -
Meta did not admit wrongdoing as part of the settlement.—
Auzinea Bacon,
CNN Money,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
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While Hadden-Paton was unsuccessful in keeping his dapper suit, his costar, Hugh Bonneville, who plays Lord Grantham, confessed to Kelly Ripa and Michael Strahan on Live!—
Meredith Wilshere,
PEOPLE,
14 Sep. 2025
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The suspect was later named as 22-year-old Robinson, and was reported to have confessed to the crime to his father.—
Kate Plummer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Maybe not in the broadcast moment, but later, in interviews or conversations, acknowledging disappointment has its own dignity.—
Vibhas Ratanjee,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
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OpenAI, for example, acknowledged in its response to the lawsuit that safety features can degrade over long conversions, despite the fact that the chatbot itself has been optimized to hold these longer conversations.—
Beatrice Nolan,
Fortune,
14 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The department is denying student loan forgiveness to borrowers in the IBR plan who have reached the 20- or 25-year threshold for discharge, even while the department concedes that loan forgiveness is authorized under IBR and has not been blocked or enjoined by any court.—
Adam S. Minsky,
Forbes.com,
17 Sep. 2025
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In his first big league start, Yesavage struck out nine batters in five innings while conceding just one run.—
Drew VonScio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
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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 18 Sep. 2025.
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