fess

¹

or fesse

[ fes ]

noun

, Heraldry.

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

fess

²

[ fes ]

fess

³

[ fes ]

noun

, Chiefly South Midland and Southern U.S.

1. a teacher.

fess

/ fɛs /

verb

1. informal.
   intrfoll byup to make a confession

Word History and Origins

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of fess¹

C19: shortened from confess

Example Sentences

Did she fess up to her IG handle?

From Los Angeles Times

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

From Salon

"But as ever with Banksy - you never quite know, until he fesses up by posting it on his website."

From BBC

He added that “unless someone fesses up to using the phone, the police don’t consider it to be a factor.”

From New York Times

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers is demanding Reuters fess up about whether its journalists had advanced knowledge of Hamas’s Oct.

From Washington Times