Etymologically
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confession

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /kənˈfɛʃən/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English confessioun, borrowed from Middle French confession,[2][3] from Latin cōnfessiō (“confession, acknowledgement”),[2][3][4] from the past participle of cōnfiteor (“to acknowledge”) (see confess),[2][4] from com- and fateor (“to admit”).[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The confessing of sins to a priest: 1377 in the OED, the late 14th century in Etymonline,[5][2] originally as one of the four parts of the sacrament of penance.[2] Old English words for it were andettung and scriftspræc.[2]

Semantic evolution

Acknowledgement of a statement or claim is from about 1380,[5] and the matter confessed from the mid-15th century.[2][5] A formulary acknowledging sinfulness, as in the prayer book, is from 1535,[5] and a formal statement of the articles of a faith from the 16th century.[2][5] In law, an acknowledgement before an authority is from 1574,[5] while the general disclosure of anything one is ashamed to reveal dates from 1602.[5]

Timeline

  • 1377 – confession to a priest.[5]
  • c. 1380 – an admission.[5]
  • mid-15th century – the thing confessed.[2]
  • 1574 – legal confession.[5]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. An admission of having done wrong, especially a statement by an accused person acknowledging guilt.
  2. In some Christian churches, the confessing of one's sins to a priest for absolution.
  3. Something confessed.
  4. A formal declaration of religious belief, or the church holding it.

Word family

  • confessional
  • confess
  • confessor
  • profess

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press