own up

Idioms and Phrases

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]

Example Sentences

In a Thursday night episode of “Report,” Baier owned up his misdirection.

From Salon

"I will own up to being a knucklehead at times, but the folks closest to me know that I keep my word."

From BBC

She professed her love for him and owned up to the ills of her ways.

From Los Angeles Times

She advises parents to "own up and apologise and try to learn from it for next time".

From BBC

Taylor agrees that white supremacy runs through Palm Springs’s history and that white residents today must be willing to own up to that legacy.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

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