fesses (up)

verb

present tense third-person singular of fess (up)
1
as in admits
to accept the truth or existence of (something) usually reluctantly he fessed up to breaking the antique vase only after his guilt was obvious

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in confesses
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

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fesses (up)
  1. admits
  2. confesses
  3. acknowledges
  4. concedes
Verb
  • Big 12 admits end-of-game error The Big 12 issued a statement acknowledging its officials erred by not allowing Notre Dame one more play when the game clock showed one second remained when CJ Carr’s incomplete pass hit the ground on the final play.
    — Mark Long, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026
  • The ongoing legal troubles compounded the stress the Hollywood couple was already dealing with and things almost took a really wrong turn, Mangianello admits.
    — Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of admits
Verb
  • Disarmed by his stepson’s surprise appearance, Morgan confesses to being the cheater.
    — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Prue follows the advice, confesses what happened to Mac, and discovers the secret her parents have been keeping from her all along.
    — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 11 Oct. 2026
Definition of confesses
Verb
  • There is a similar problem with Quantum Systems' claim, which the company acknowledges.
    — David Szondy October 20, New Atlas, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Advertisement Chief Justice John Roberts acknowledges that authority in his ruling in Rucho.
    — Connor Greene, Time, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of acknowledges
Verb
  • But copying human anatomy makes the hands heavier, and LinkerBot concedes that fingertip force is modest.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Shapiro eventually concedes that good-faith developers are at the Homer City campus, something that earns a broad smile from Steffee, exhausted by the politics.
    — Salena Zito, Washington Post, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of concedes
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

fessed (up)
fesses (up)
fessing (up)
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Cite this Entry

“Fesses (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fesses%20%28up%29. Accessed 24 Oct. 2026.

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