fess

¹ American  

[fes] / fɛs /

Or fesse

noun

Heraldry.

1. an ordinary in the form of a broad horizontal band across the middle of an escutcheon.

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fess ² American  

[fes] / fɛs /

verb phrase

1. fess up to admit or concede, especially freely.

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fess ³ American  

[fes] / fɛs /

Also fessor

noun

Chiefly South Midland and Southern U.S.

1. a teacher.

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fess British  

/ fɛs /

verb

1. informal to make a confession

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Etymology

Origin of fess¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English fes(se), veece, fesshe, from Old French, ultimately from Latin fascia fascia

Origin of fess²

An Americanism dating back to 1830–40; shortening of confess

Origin of fess³

First recorded in 1905–10; shortening of professor

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fess

The SNP MSP told reporters: "I will freely fess up to things I've done but I will not apologise for things I've not done."

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2025

Did she fess up to her IG handle?

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 15, 2024

This wasn’t the time to fess up that something horribly wrong was happening.

From Salon ● Sep. 30, 2024

So c’mon, Alec, fess up, what did Bryce tell you?

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 1, 2022

Then I had to fess up and tell her I forgot to do it.

From "The Skin I'm In" by Sharon G. Flake

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