make a clean breast of

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Confess fully, as in Caught shoplifting, the girls decided to make a clean breast of it to their parents. This expression, first recorded in 1752, uses clean breast in the sense of baring of one's heart, the breast long considered the seat of private or secret feelings.

QUIZ

TAKE JOY IN ACING THIS QUIZ ON “PRIDE” SYNONYMS

Hold your head up high as you embark on this quiz that explores some of the synonyms and meanings of “pride.”

Question 1 of 7

What does "dignity" mean?

showing self-respect

treating others with kindness

acting selfishly

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Words nearby make a clean breast of

Makati, make, make a beeline for, make a break for, make a bundle, make a clean breast of, make a clean breast of it, make a clean sweep, make a comeback, make a crack, make a date

How to use make a clean breast of in a sentence

Genetics alone does not an eating disorder make, generally speaking, and Bulik points out that environment still plays a role.
How Skinny Is Too Skinny? Israel Bans ‘Underweight’ Models|Carrie Arnold|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
With Charlie Hebdo, “you really have a clean case here,” Shearer said.
Harry Shearer on The Dangerous Business of Satire|Lloyd Grove|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
And yes, our values include tolerance of those who wish to make fun of religion.
Ayaan Hirsi Ali: Our Duty Is to Keep Charlie Hebdo Alive|Ayaan Hirsi Ali|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The court ruled she lacked the maturity to make her own medical decisions.
Should Teens Have The Right To Die?|Brandy Zadrozny|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST

ROME — What does it take for a Hollywood A-lister to get a private audience with Pope Francis?
Pope Francis Has the Pleasure of Meeting Angelina Jolie for a Few Seconds|Barbie Latza Nadeau|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
And to tell the truth, she couldn't help wishing he could see, so he could make the game livelier.
The Tale of Grandfather Mole|Arthur Scott Bailey
She did not need a great cook-book; She knew how much and what it took To make things good and sweet and light.
Boys and Girls Bookshelf; a Practical Plan of Character Building, Volume I (of 17)|Various
Now-a-days it is the bankrupt who flouts, and his too confiding creditors who are jeered and laughed at.
Glances at Europe|Horace Greeley
Now this setting up of an orderly law-abiding self seems to me to imply that there are impulses which make for order.
Children's Ways|James Sully
Give a sweet savour, and a memorial of fine flour, and make a fat offering, and then give place to the physician.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various