fess

1 of 2

verb

ˈfes 

fessed; fessing; fesses

intransitive verb

: to own up : confess

—usually used with up

fess

2 of 2

noun

ˈfes 

variants or less commonly fesse

1

: a broad horizontal bar across the middle of a heraldic field

2

: the center point of an armorial escutcheon

Synonyms

Verb

• acknowledge
• admit
• agree
• allow
• concede
• confess
• grant
• own (up to)

Examples of fess in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

So c'mon, Alec, fess up, what did Bryce tell you? —CBS News, 1 Nov. 2022

What happens when restaurants don’t fess up? —Sarah Blaskovich, Dallas News, 24 June 2020

Okay, fess up: who made a hole in Mars? —Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 21 July 2012

Measurement must, at times, suffice as a substitute for understanding, but measurers must fess up to this fudging up-front—as did the inimitable Richard Feynman. —WIRED, 9 Feb. 2023

Before taking any action make certain to honestly fess up to your advisers about what your real concerns are. —Martin Shenkman, Forbes, 6 Feb. 2023

Before making any major life decisions, Joe needed to fess up to what happened earlier. —Dana Rose Falcone, PEOPLE.com, 5 Oct. 2021

Word History

Etymology

Verb

short for confess

Noun

Middle English fesse, from Anglo-French faisse band, from Latin fascia — more at fascia

First Known Use

Verb

1840, in the meaning defined above

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing fess

• fess up