as in to confess
to make an acknowledgment of something unpleasant as true or valid
had a strong suspicion about which coworker stole her food from the office fridge, but the likely culprit refused to own up
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for own (up)
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 -
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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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
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Meta did not admit wrongdoing as part of the settlement.—
Auzinea Bacon,
CNN Money,
13 Sep. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Own (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/own%20%28up%29. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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