3 N‑COUNT A cone is a thin, cone-shaped biscuit that is used for holding ice cream. You can also refer to an ice cream that you eat in this way as a cone . □ She stopped by the ice-cream shop and had a chocolate cone.
4 → see also pine cone , traffic cone
con|fec|tion /kənfe kʃ ə n/ (confections ) N‑COUNT You can refer to a sweet food that someone has made as a confection . [WRITTEN ] □ …a confection made with honey and nuts.
con|fec|tion|er /kənfe kʃənə r / (confectioners ) N‑COUNT A confectioner is a person whose job is making or selling sweets and chocolates.
con|fe c|tion|ers' su g|ar N‑UNCOUNT Confectioners' sugar is very fine white sugar that is used for making icing and candy. [AM ] in BRIT, use icing sugar
con|fec|tion|ery /kənfe kʃənri, [AM ] -neri/ N‑UNCOUNT Confectionery is sweets and chocolates. [WRITTEN ] □ …hand-made confectionery.
con|fed|era|cy /kənfe dərəsi/ (confederacies ) N‑COUNT A confederacy is a union of states or people who are trying to achieve the same thing. □ …a confederacy of regional states.
con|fed|er|ate /kənfe dərət/ (confederates ) N‑COUNT Someone's confederates are the people they are working with in a secret activity.
con|fed|era|tion /kənfe dəre I ʃ ə n/ (confederations ) N‑COUNT A confederation is an organization or group consisting of smaller groups or states, especially one that exists for business or political purposes. □ [+ of ] …the Confederation of Indian Industry. □ [+ of ] …plans to partition the republic into a confederation of mini-states.
con|fer /kənfɜː r / (confers , conferring , conferred )
1 VERB When you confer with someone, you discuss something with them in order to make a decision. You can also say that two people confer . □ [V + with ] He conferred with Hill and the others in his office. □ [V ] His doctors conferred by telephone and agreed that he must get away from his family for a time.
2 VERB To confer something such as power or an honour on someone means to give it to them. [FORMAL ] □ [V n + on ] The constitution also confers large powers on Brazil's 25 constituent states. □ [V n] Never imagine that rank confers genuine authority.
con|fer|ence ◆◆◆ /kɒ nfrəns/ (conferences )
1 N‑COUNT A conference is a meeting, often lasting a few days, which is organized on a particular subject or to bring together people who have a common interest. □ [+ on ] The President summoned all the state governors to a conference on education. □ …the Conservative Party conference. □ Last weekend the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland held a conference, attended by 450 delegates.
2 N‑COUNT [oft in N ] A conference is a meeting at which formal discussions take place. □ They sat down at the dinner table, as they always did, before the meal, for a conference. □ Her employer was in conference with two lawyers and did not want to be interrupted.
3 → see also press conference SYNONYMS conference NOUN 1
meeting: …business meetings.
forum: The organisation provides a forum where problems can be discussed.
convention: …the annual convention of the Society of Professional Journalists.
symposium: He had been taking part in an international symposium on population.
convocation: …a convocation of the American Youth Congress.
co n|fer|ence call (conference calls ) N‑COUNT A conference call is a phone call in which more than two people take part. [BUSINESS ] □ [+ with ] There are daily conference calls with Washington.
con|fess /kənfe s/ (confesses , confessing , confessed )
1 VERB If someone confesses to doing something wrong, they admit that they did it. □ [V + to ] He had confessed to seventeen murders. □ [V that] I had expected her to confess that she only wrote these books for the money. □ [V n] Most rape victims confess a feeling of helplessness. □ [V ] Ray changed his mind, claiming that he had been forced into confessing. □ [V with quote] 'I played a very bad match,' he confessed. [Also V wh, V pron-refl adj/n]
2 VERB If someone confesses or confesses their sins, they tell God or a priest about their sins so that they can be forgiven. □ [V n] You just go to the church and confess your sins. □ [V n + to ] Once we have confessed our failures and mistakes to God, we should stop feeling guilty. [Also V , V to n]
3 PHRASE You use expressions like ' I confess ', ' I must confess ', or ' I have to confess ' to apologize slightly for admitting something you are ashamed of or that you think might offend or annoy someone. [POLITENESS ] □ I confess it's got me baffled. □ I must confess I'm not a great enthusiast for long political programmes.
con|fessed /kənfe st/ ADJ [ADJ n] You use confessed to describe someone who openly admits that they have a particular fault or have done something wrong. □ She is a confessed monarchist.
con|fes|sion /kənfe ʃ ə n/ (confessions )
1 N‑COUNT A confession is a signed statement by someone in which they admit that they have committed a particular crime. □ They forced him to sign a confession.
2 N‑VAR Confession is the act of admitting that you have done something that you are ashamed of or embarrassed about. □ The diaries are a mixture of confession and observation. □ I have a confession to make.