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confessionary

1 8.2

Very personal and honest speech or writing that admits private feelings

adjective
/kənˈfɛʃənɛri/

Literature

: confesional

In his speech, he adopted a confessionary tone, revealing his vulnerabilities and mistakes to inspire honesty.

Examples

I well remember personal confessionary stories from men that were a bit older than me; often they were the drivers when I was hitchhiking.

Blog text (20)
The author's latest novel is filled with confessionary reflections about his childhood experiences.
Her confessionary style in the blog allows readers to connect with her personal struggles and triumphs.

Synonyms

candid

vsconfessionary

83 4.6

Open and honest, telling the truth even when it is hard

is more personal and self-revealing, like a private admission

Antonyms

reticent

17 7.9

Not willing to talk about thoughts or feelings easily

reserved

3.7

Not willing to show feelings or talk much

How Revealing

explicit

142 4.8

confessionary

Literature

1 8.2

personal

∞ 1.4

private

∞ 2.2

reserved

3.7

Surface Forms

confessionary positive

Morphology

confessionary = confession (transparent) = confession + ary

Clear adjectival derivation from 'confession' using the suffix '-ary' meaning 'relating to' or 'characterized by', so a learner knowing 'confession' can infer the meaning.

Etymology

Confessionary comes from the familiar word confess, which breaks into con- 'with' and a root meaning 'to speak', so it originally meant 'to speak with' someone about private matters. That's why calling writing or speech confessionary means it is personal and honest, like a confession.