Get Affordable VMs - excellent virtual server hosting


browse words by letter
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
confess

more about confess

confess


  3  definitions  found 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Confess  \Con*fess"\,  v.  t.  [imp.  &  p.  p.  {Confessed};  p.  pr  & 
  vb  n.  {Confessing}.]  [F.  confesser,  fr  L.  confessus  p.  p. 
  of  confiteri  to  confess;  con-  +  fateri  to  confess;  akin  to 
  fari  to  speak.  See  2d  {Ban},  {Fame}.] 
  1.  To  make  acknowledgment  or  avowal  in  a  matter  pertaining  to 
  one's  self  to  acknowledge,  own  or  admit  as  a  crime,  a 
  fault,  a  debt. 
 
  And  there  confess  Humbly  our  faults,  and  pardon  beg. 
  --Milton. 
 
  I  must  confess  I  was  most  pleased  with  a  beautiful 
  prospect  that  none  of  them  have  mentioned. 
  --Addison. 
 
  2.  To  acknowledge  faith  in  to  profess  belief  in 
 
  Whosoever,  therefore,  shall  confess  me  before  men, 
  him  will  I  confess,  also  before  my  Father  which  is 
  in  heaven.  --Matt.  x.  32. 
 
  For  the  Sadducees  say  that  there  is  no  resurrection, 
  neither  angel,  nor  spirit;  but  the  Pharisees  confess 
  both  --Acts  xxiii. 
  8. 
 
  3.  To  admit  as  true;  to  assent  to  to  acknowledge,  as  after  a 
  previous  doubt,  denial,  or  concealment. 
 
  I  never  gave  it  him  Send  for  him  hither,  And  let 
  him  confess  a  truth.  --Shak. 
 
  As  I  confess  it  needs  must  be  --Tennyson. 
 
  As  an  actor  confessed  without  rival  to  shine. 
  --Goldsmith. 
 
  4.  (Eccl.) 
  a  To  make  known  or  acknowledge,  as  one's  sins  to  a 
  priest,  in  order  to  receive  absolution;  --  sometimes 
  followed  by  the  reflexive  pronoun. 
 
  Our  beautiful  votary  took  an  opportunity  of 
  confessing  herself  to  this  celebrated  father. 
  --Addison. 
  b  To  hear  or  receive  such  confession;  --  said  of  a 
  priest. 
 
  He  .  .  .  heard  mass,  and  the  prince,  his  son, 
  with  him  and  the  most  part  of  his  company  were 
  confessed.  --Ld.  Berners 
 
  5.  To  disclose  or  reveal,  as  an  effect  discloses  its  cause 
  to  prove;  to  attest. 
 
  Tall  thriving  trees  confessed  the  fruitful  mold. 
  --Pope. 
 
  Syn:  Admit  grant;  concede;  avow;  own  assent;  recognize; 
  prove;  exhibit;  attest. 
 
  Usage:  {To  Confess},  {Acknowledge},  {Avow}.  Acknowledge  is 
  opposed  to  conceal.  We  acknowledge  what  we  feel  must 
  or  ought  to  be  made  known  (See  {Acknowledge}.)  Avow 
  is  opposed  to  withhold.  We  avow  when  we  make  an  open 
  and  public  declaration,  as  against  obloquy  or 
  opposition;  as  to  avow  one's  principles;  to  avow 
  one's  participation  in  some  act  Confess  is  opposed  to 
  deny.  We  confess  (in  the  ordinary  sense  of  the  word) 
  what  we  feel  to  have  been  wrong  as  to  confess  one's 
  errors  or  faults.  We  sometimes  use  confess  and 
  acknowledge  when  there  is  no  admission  of  our  being  in 
  the  wrong  as  this  I  confess,  is  my  opinion;  I 
  acknowledge  I  have  always  thought  so  but  in  these 
  cases  we  mean  simply  to  imply  that  others  may  perhaps 
  think  us  in  the  wrong  and  hence  we  use  the  words  by 
  way  of  deference  to  their  opinions.  It  was  in  this  way 
  that  the  early  Christians  were  led  to  use  the  Latin 
  confiteor  and  confessio  fidei  to  denote  the  public 
  declaration  of  their  faith  in  Christianity;  and  hence 
  the  corresponding  use  in  English  of  the  verb  confess 
  and  the  noun  confession. 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Confess  \Con*fess"\,  v.  i. 
  1.  To  make  confession;  to  disclose  sins  or  faults,  or  the 
  state  of  the  conscience. 
 
  Every  tongue  shall  confess  to  God.  --Rom.  xiv. 
  11. 
 
  2.  To  acknowledge;  to  admit  to  concede. 
 
  But  since  (And  I  confess  with  right)  you  think  me 
  bound.  --Tennyson. 
 
  From  WordNet  r  1.6  [wn]: 
 
  confess 
  v  1:  confess  to  a  punishable  or  reprehensible  deed,  usually  under 
  pressure  [syn:  {squeal},  {shrive}] 
  2:  make  a  clean  breast  of  "She  confessed  that  she  had  taken 
  the  money"  [syn:  {concede},  {profess}] 
  3:  confess  to  God  in  the  presence  of  a  priest,  as  in  the 
  Catholic  faith 




more about confess