Shrift Short Confession Absolution English Comeback Noun Priest

shrift /shrift/

noun

Confession to a priest. Also, penance and absolution that follow confession.

[From Old English scrift (confession, penance), from scrifan (to shrive: to impose penance). Ultimately from the Indo-European root skribh- (to cut, separate, or sift) that has resulted in other terms, such as manuscript, scribe, subscribe, scripture, scribble, and describe. Earliest documented use: 897. The term nowadays is mostly seen in the form "to get short shrift" meaning to receive little consideration or a curt treatment. Originally, short shrift was what condemned criminals received: brief time granted to them for confession and absolution before execution.]

"Their schools focus on religious learning: even basic subjects such as maths and English get short shrift." - Talmud and Cheesecake; The Economist (London, UK); Jul 28, 2012.

"Downey's midcareer comeback is also given fair shrift in this absorbing account of one man's amazing triumph over his voracious demons." - Chris Keech; Robert Downey Jr.: The Fall and Rise of the Comeback Kid; The Booklist (Chicago); Dec 15, 2010.