confessed; confessing; confesses
Definition of confess
1
: to tell or make known (something, such as something wrong or damaging to oneself) : admit
he confessed his guilt
2a
: to acknowledge (sin) to God or to a priest
b
: to receive the confession of (a penitent)
3
: to declare faith in or adherence to : profess
4
: to give evidence of
Breeze, bird, and flower confess the hour …— Sir Walter Scott
1a
: to disclose one's faults
specifically
: to unburden one's sins or the state of one's conscience to God or to a priest
b
: to hear a confession
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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Time Traveler for confess
The first known use of confess was in the 14th century
See more words from the same century