confess

confess — 動詞

1. to openly tell someone, often with a feeling of guilt, about an illegal or moral

1.動詞及物 / 不及物B2
釋義

坦白；招認

承認自己做過的錯事

to openly tell someone, often with a feeling of guilt, about an illegal or morally bad action you committed, especially one you were trying to hide — for instance, admitting a theft when the police question you, or telling a friend about a lie you have been keeping.

例句

Nikhil confessed to stealing the money after the manager found the security footage.

Nikhil 向經理坦承偷了錢，因為經理找到了監視器畫面。

confess to + gerund for admitting an action

Tamar confessed to her roommate that she had eaten the last piece of cake.

Tamar 向室友坦白說她吃掉了最後一塊蛋糕。

confess to + person + that-clause

同義詞
  • admit

    Broader and less emotional; can be used for any acknowledgment, not just of wrongdoing ('admit you were wrong')

  • own up to

    Informal phrasal verb, often used in everyday situations when someone stops hiding the truth ('own up to breaking the cup')

  • come clean

    Informal idiom meaning to finally tell the full truth after lying or hiding it ('decided to come clean about the affair')

反義詞
  • deny

    To state that something is not true, the direct opposite of confessing

  • conceal

    To keep hidden deliberately, without the act of admitting

文法句型

confess + that-clause

confess to + noun / gerund

confess + noun + to + person

confess (without object)

用法筆記

Frequently used with the preposition 'to' followed by the person receiving the confession ('confessed to her mother') or by the wrongdoing itself as a gerund ('confessed to stealing'). When the wrongdoing is a that-clause, the preposition 'to' is not used ('confessed that he had taken the money'). Common in both legal contexts (confessing to the police) and everyday personal situations (confessing a mistake to a friend or family member).

常見錯誤

❌She confessed to told her mother the truth.
✅She confessed to telling her mother the truth.
💡After 'confess to', use the gerund (-ing form), not the past tense.
❌I confessed my fault to the teacher.
✅I admitted my mistake to the teacher.' / 'I confessed that I was at fault.
💡'Confess' is used for moral or legal wrongdoing, not for minor non-moral errors; 'admit' is more natural for small mistakes.

2. in Roman Catholicism and certain other Christian churches, to privately tell a p

2.動詞及物 / 不及物B1
釋義

告解；懺悔

向神父承認罪過

in Roman Catholicism and certain other Christian churches, to privately tell a priest about your sins during a formal ceremony, trusting that God will pardon you through the priest's blessing — a practice known as the Sacrament of Penance.

例句

Every Saturday afternoon, Noor goes to the church near her house to confess her sins.

每週六下午，Noor 都會去家附近的教堂告解。

confess + noun (sins) for religious context

Folake confessed her mistakes to the priest and asked God to forgive her.

Folake 向神父懺悔了自己的過錯，並祈求上帝寬恕她。

confess + noun + to + priest

同義詞
  • repent

    Different focus: repent means to feel genuine sorrow and decide to change, while confess is the act of telling one's sins aloud

文法句型

confess + noun (sins, wrongdoings)

confess to + person

confess + that-clause

用法筆記

In Catholic and Orthodox Christianity, this is a formal sacrament. The person confesses (the penitent) goes to a priest and tells their sins aloud. The priest then offers advice and gives a penance (a prayer or good deed). The noun 'confession' can refer both to the act itself ('went to confession') and to the list of sins told ('my confession took five minutes'). In Protestant traditions, believers are more likely to 'confess their sins directly to God' in private prayer rather than to a priest.

常見錯誤

❌I went to confession and confessed my crimes.
✅I went to confession and confessed my sins.
💡In a religious context, the word 'sins' is used, not 'crimes' (which is legal language).
❌The priest confessed the man.
✅The priest heard the man's confession.
💡The priest receives the confession; the person making the confession is the one who confesses.