1
as in admitting
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 confessing
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 fessing (up)
Verb
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Prospective jurors also expressed concerns about fairness, with some admitting that media coverage and the defendant's background could influence their judgment.—
CBS Texas Staff,
CBS News,
4 June 2026 -
The restaurant must now post a public disclaimer admitting past false sustainability and sourcing claims.—
Stephanie Breijo,
Los Angeles Times,
3 June 2026
Verb
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Over at JoAnne and Gary's, Orson is confessing to his stepdad about stealing his mom's gun.—
Matt Cabral,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 June 2026
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Globally, data shows young men are comfortable confessing to AI chatbots.—
Ashoka,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2026
Verb
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The season is also acknowledging America’s 250th anniversary and celebrating those artists, musicians and composers alike who came from far away and chose to become American citizens and make their creative home here in this country.—
Jim Harrington,
Mercury News,
29 May 2026
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In opting to lease its compute capacity to Anthropic, SpaceX was acknowledging that its own AI models and services haven’t inspired great demand and that the company isn’t in a position to take advantage of its costly infrastructure.—
Lora Kolodny,
CNBC,
29 May 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Fessing (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fessing%20%28up%29. Accessed 10 Jun. 2026.
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