fess

fess1

fess ¹

also fesse  (fĕs)

n. Heraldry

A wide horizontal band forming the middle section of an escutcheon.

---

[Middle English fesse, from Old French, from Latin fascia, band.]

---

fess ²

 (fĕs)

intr.v. fessed, fess·ing, fess·es Informal

To admit to something; confess, often used with up: "won't fess up to being even vaguely liberal" (Jonathan Alter).

---

[Short for confess.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

fess

(fɛs)

vb

informal chiefly (foll by: up) US to make a confession

[C19: shortened from confess]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

fess¹

or fesse

(fɛs)

n.

a wide horizontal band across the center of a heraldic field.

[1350–1400; Middle English fesse < Anglo-French « Latin fascia fascia]

fess²

(fɛs)

v.t., v.i.

Informal. fess up, to confess or concede.

[1830–40; aph. variant of confess]

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

fess - (heraldry) an ordinary consisting of a broad horizontal band across a shield fesse ordinary - (heraldry) any of several conventional figures used on shields heraldry - the study and classification of armorial bearings and the tracing of genealogies

Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.