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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Hall, who lost the use of both legs from childhood polio, sued in 1978 to have wheelchair racers admitted into the New York Marathon, a fight that wasn’t settled until the race created men’s and women’s wheelchair divisions in 2000.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
12 Apr. 2026 -
The proponents of this measure have even admitted unabashedly that this is part of a national effort to divide Coloradoans and drive turnout in the midterm elections.—
Mike Smith,
Denver Post,
12 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In an interview with The Times, Sid confessed that the whole thing was a lie concocted by a publicist in the 1940s.—
Anabel Sosa,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Apr. 2026
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Flores confessed when police questioned him, authorities said in court filings.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
12 Apr. 2026
Verb
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User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
14 Apr. 2026
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Smith acknowledged the exorbitant price to build reliable orbital data centers, which will have an operational life of five to seven years, is its own obstacle.—
Zachary Hansen,
AJC.com,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In an interview with NBC News, a former commander with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran’s powerful paramilitary group, conceded that many of the regime’s conditions were unlikely to be accepted by Washington but insisted Tehran was prepared to make concessions.—
Katherine Doyle,
NBC news,
9 Apr. 2026
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The contradiction runs so deep that 62% of those same executives privately concede that the risk of unsanctioned shadow AI is overstated compared to the risk of not leveraging AI at all.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
9 Apr. 2026
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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. 2026.
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