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owns (up)

verb

present tense third-person singular of own (up)
as in confesses
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 owns (up)
  1. confesses
  2. admits
Verb
  • Things are suddenly different, starting at work, where the gallery director confesses to noticing him for the first time and a punky feminist artist requests his involvement in her upcoming show.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 14 Sep. 2026
  • The morning after Kylie confesses her love to the devoted Gideon (Xolo Maridueña), he’s hit by a car and sinks into a coma.
    — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of confesses
Verb
  • Harrow School admits only boys and prepares its students for A-levels, Harrow New York is co-ed and offers an International Baccalaureate curriculum.
    — Ashley Baker, Vanity Fair, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Anti-mafia prosecutor Alessandra Cerreti, who has persuaded dozens of women to testify against crime families across all Italy’s crime syndicates, admits the risks are high.
    — Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN Money, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of admits
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

owns
owns (up)
owns (up to)
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Cite this Entry

“Owns (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/owns%20%28up%29. Accessed 25 Sep. 2026.

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