Hypertext Webster Gateway: "confessor"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Confessor \Con*fess"or\ (?; 277), n. [OF. confessor, F.
confesseur, fr. L. & LL. confessor.]
1. One who confesses; one who acknowledges a fault, or the
truth of a charge, at the risk of suffering; specifically,
one who confesses himself a follower of Christ and endures
persecution for his faith.
He who dies for religion is a martyr; he who suffers
for it is a confessor. --Latham.
Our religion which hath been sealed with the blood
of so many martyrs and confessors. --Bacon.
2. A priest who hears the confessions of others and is
authorized to grant them absolution.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
confessor
n 1: a priest who hears confession and gives absolution
2: someone who confesses (discloses information damaging to
themselves)
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