confessional

American  

[kuhn-fesh-uh-nl] / kənˈfɛʃ ə nl /

adjective

1. of, pertaining to, characteristic of, or based on confession.

   confessional release.

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noun

1. the place set apart for the hearing of confessions by a priest.

2. French Furniture. a high, upholstered wing chair of the 18th century.

confessional British  

/ kənˈfɛʃənəl /

adjective

1. of, like, or suited to a confession

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noun

1. Christianity RC Church a small stall, usually enclosed and divided by a screen or curtain, where a priest hears confessions

2. a book of penitential prayers

Other Word Forms

• pseudoconfessional
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of confessional

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Medieval Latin confessiōnāle, neuter of confessiōnālis (adjective); see confession, -al ¹; confessional defs. 2, 3 from French, from Medieval Latin

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

confessional

The 83-year-old confessional lyricist said in a statement that she had "been learning how to live with Parkinson's disease" and that she had also been treated for skin cancer.

From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026

Notably, the seventh song on the album, “Everything,” tips the record into a more appropriately confessional place, a perspective one couldn’t get with the short film alone.

From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026

Through the process of writing the script, Madonna was bitten by the memoir bug, but she channeled that confessional energy into her forthcoming album, “Confessions on a Dance Floor: Part II,” which drops July 3.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 23, 2026

Since 2022, she's cast a spell on the charts with swoonsome love songs that mix classic jazz vocals and luscious orchestrations with witty, confessional lyrics.

From BBC ● May 2, 2026

Not long after, Bryant and Milam sold their eyewitness confessional story to Look magazine for four thousand dollars.

From "While the World Watched: A Birmingham Bombing Survivor Comes of Age during the Civil Rights Movement" by Carolyn Maull McKinstry