unconfessed
1
7.9
- adjective
- /ˌʌnkənˈfɛst/
- According to Guillaume's testimony, Aude had told him not only about her unconfessed sin, but had admitted that "when I am in church and the body of Christ is raised, I cannot pray to it nor can I behold it, but when I think to look at it, a certain glare comes before my eyes."
- an unconfessed sin
Examples
-
But this convention is unconscious, or at least unconfessed: every literary imposture lies in this dissimulation.
Academic text (1999) -
"Only if unconfessed," Jochi reminded her.
Fiction book (2002) -
But yet I was her friend, and this could no longer go unconfessed.
Fiction book (1996) -
"Not everyone thought that shame was the chief cause of unconfessed sin.
Academic text (2010) -
Don't allow unconfessed sin to remain in your life.
Blog text (29) -
It was as if St. Ed was playing the song for him, expressing the hidden, unconfessed desires that had been plaguing him for weeks.
Fiction book (1993) -
Unkissed, unrejoicing, unconfessed, unembraced.
-
Meanwhile, Guillaume—the only person to whom Aude had mentioned her unconfessed sin—demanded that his wife confess to a priest at once.
Academic text (2006) -
She felt a weight on her conscience due to the unconfessed mistakes she had made.
-
His unconfessed guilt haunted him, making it hard to enjoy his life.
Synonyms
1
9.3
Not openly admitted
Antonyms
How Confessed
Surface Forms
Morphology
unconfessed = confessed (transparent) = un + confess + ed
The prefix 'un-' straightforwardly negates the adjectival form 'confessed', so the meaning is directly predictable.
Etymology
Unconfessed is made from un- meaning 'not' and confess meaning 'to admit' or 'say you did something wrong', the same root you see in confession; think of someone telling the truth aloud. So, unconfessed describes something not admitted or told, like a secret sin or a hidden love.