own up

Idioms  

1. Confess, make a full admission, as in Come on, Tim, you'd better own up that you lost the car keys. This idiom uses the verb own in the sense of “acknowledge.” [Colloquial; mid-1800s]

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Example Sentences

Lindelof acknowledged Morrison’s criticism and owned up to his faux pas before sharing just how much Hal Jordan — one of the Green Lanterns who will be featured in the series — meant to him growing up.

From Los Angeles Times

Greenspan taught me the value of owning up to my mistakes.

From Barron's

"I'm glad they've apologised and owned up their failings," she said.

From BBC

Nobody would own up to it, especially not Buddy.

From Literature

DexCom has since owned up to its reliability issues, saying they originated with the subcut needle insertion mechanism rather than the sensor itself.

From Barron's

Related Words

• accept
• affirm
• agree
• allow
• approve
• concede
• confirm
• declare
• disclose
• grant
• indicate
• permit
• recognize
• reveal
• talk
• tell