SARAH: Shrift derives from the latin word scrībere, to write.

RALPH: Ah, like the word, “scribble.”

SARAH: Yes, Ralph. In the early Middle Ages, to shrive meant to write; and a shrift was what was written down.

RALPH: Because just about the only people at that time who could write were priests, a shrift came to mean the list of penitences, or penalties, priests gave to members of their congregation to perform after they had confessed their sins. Later, it came to mean the act of religious confession itself.

SARAH: Here, Montague is using shrift in a broader figurative sense to mean any revealing of secrets. He wants Benvolio “To hear true shrift,” or to learn the secret reason for Romeo’s lovesickness.