bribe

noun \ ˈbrīb \

|Updated on: 10 Aug 2018

Examples: bribe in a Sentence

Definition of bribe

1 : money or favor given or promised in order to influence the judgment or conduct of a person in a position of trust

police officers accused of taking bribes

2 : something that serves to induce or influence

offered the kid a bribe to finish his homework

See bribe defined for English-language learners

See bribe defined for kids

Examples of bribe in a Sentence

I offered the children a bribe for finishing their homework.
that judge refused a huge bribe to dismiss the charges against the wealthy defendant

Recent Examples of bribe from the Web

Access is through checkpoints manned by the army and CJTF, who demand bribes.

— The Economist, "The fight against Islamic State is moving to Africa," 14 July 2018
Another story tells of a whistleblower who accused a pharmaceutical company of illicit bribes to gain access to patient records.

— hal boedeker, OrlandoSentinel.com, "'Jonestown: An American Tragedy,' Sacha Baron Cohen: This weekend," 13 July 2018
Prosecutors said the bribes were paid through a fake job that Sherry Pierce had, working for the wife of Jim Norton.

— ryan randazzo, azcentral, "Judge slams Johnson Utilities' service, says company needs an emergency manager," 12 July 2018
The jockeys are negotiating bribes right up to the starting shot.

— maya singer, Vogue, "A Weekend Under the Tuscan Sun with Rosetta Getty at the Palio Horse Race," 3 July 2018
However, opponents of Walker criticize the plan as an election-year bribe.

— max bayer, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Nearly 140,000 families have yet to apply for child tax rebate with the deadline hours away," 2 July 2018
John Kays pleaded guilty to receiving bribes of approximately $800,000 from Barrow and was sentenced to six years in prison last month.

— allan vought, The Aegis, "Man pleads guilty to fraud in connection with Aberdeen Proving Ground contracting scandal," 29 June 2018
Gangs and drug cartels Lawlessness rules many countries where immigrants flee, and drug cartels, gangs and bribes are part of everyday life that runs similar to war zones in some areas.

— christal hayes, USA TODAY, "Thousands of immigrants pass through the southern border. Why are they fleeing their home countries?," 25 June 2018
In Chinese courts, which are often criticized as lacking due process and transparency, Mr. Hu ultimately pleaded guilty to accepting bribes as a part of deals to provide iron ore to Chinese steel mills.

— paul mozur, New York Times, "China Frees Australian Executive at Center of Diplomatic Dispute," 4 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bribe.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of bribe

Middle English, morsel given to a beggar, bribe, from Anglo-French, morsel

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

bribe Synonyms

Synonyms

boodle, fix, sop;

Related Words

kickback, payoff;

slush fund;

incentive, incitement, instigation, motivation, provocation, spur, stimulation, stimulus;

boost, encouragement, goad, inducement;

allurement, bait, enticement, lure, seduction, temptation, turn-on;

flattery, persuasion;

decoy, snare, trap;

Other Economics Terms

actuary, compound interest, globalization, indemnity, portfolio, rentier, stagflation, usurer

bribe

verb

Definition of bribe

bribed; bribing

transitive verb

: to influence the judgment or conduct of (someone) with or as if with offers of money or favor : to induce or influence by or as if by bribery

attempting to bribe a judge

bribing a child with candy

intransitive verb

: to practice bribery

—

bribable

play \ˈbrī-bə-bəl\ adjective

—

bribee

play \ˌbrī-ˈbē\ noun

—

briber

noun

See bribe defined for English-language learners

Examples of bribe in a Sentence

She was arrested for attempting to bribe a judge.
They bribed him to keep quiet about the incident.
We bribed the children with candy.

Recent Examples of bribe from the Web

The most controversial of the three most prevalent theories came from Fernando Rodriguez, the son of a Colombian drug lord, who claimed that the Cali Cartel provided the money that Argentina used to bribe the Peru players.

— SI.com, "World Cup Countdown: 10 Weeks to Go - The World Cries Foul as Peru Crumble Against Argentina in 1978," 13 Apr. 2018
Also facing prosecution was Thales, a French arms company whose South African affiliate was formerly known as Thint, which was accused of bribing Zuma.

— robyn dixon, latimes.com, "Former South African President Jacob Zuma tells crowd he's innocent after court appearance on corruption charges," 6 Apr. 2018
Basically accusing members of Congress of trying to bribe him.

— Fox News, "Gorka, Hollman preview Trump's upcoming summit with Putin," 30 June 2018
Kim was later jailed for embezzlement in 2012, but released months later. Lee’s son, Lee Jae-yong, was sentenced to five years in 2017 for bribing the former president, but was also released months later.

— david volodzko, The New Republic, "The Corporate Gangs Who Could Profit From Trade With North Korea," 26 June 2018
Speaking of tourism bureaus trying to bribe us with free food, mark your calendar for Saturday, June 30.

— lori rackl, chicagotribune.com, "Where to score free ice cream Thursday, the official start of summer," 20 June 2018
While in custody, Johnson tried to tamper with witnesses and contact his victims online, bribing them with gifts and promises of money to change their testimony, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a statement.

— gillian flaccus, USA TODAY, "Jury finds Christian missionary from Oregon guilty of abusing Cambodian orphans," 16 May 2018
In 2011, several former executives of Siemens AG , including a former chief financial officer of Siemens Argentina, were charged for allegedly bribing Argentine government officials.

— adrienne roberts, WSJ, "Volkswagen Ex-CEO Martin Winterkorn Indicted in Emissions Probe," 4 May 2018
The 2013 case has all the trappings of international cyber-espionage: charges that Sinovel Wind Group bribed a Serbian man to steal the technology.

— bruce vielmetti, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Chinese firm fined $1.5 million in theft of trade secrets from Wisconsin computer firm," 6 July 2018

Origin and Etymology of bribe

see ¹bribe

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1528

in the meaning defined at transitive sense

See Words from the same year

bribe Synonyms

Synonyms

buy, corrupt, have, pay off, square;

Related Words

fix, tamper (with);

abase, debase, debauch, defile, degrade, demean, deprave, dishonor, pervert, poison, profane, prostitute, subvert, taint, warp;

allure, bait, beguile, entice, lead on, lure, seduce, tempt;

motivate, provoke, spur, stimulate;

goad, induce;

flatter, persuade;

snare, trap;

Phrases

get at, grease the hand of (or grease the palm of), oil the hand of (or oil the palm of);

BRIBE Defined for English Language Learners

bribe

noun

Definition of bribe for English Language Learners

: something valuable (such as money) that is given in order to get someone to do something

bribe

verb

Definition of bribe for English Language Learners

: to try to get someone to do something by giving or promising something valuable (such as money) : to give or offer a bribe to (someone)

BRIBE Defined for Kids

bribe

noun \ ˈbrīb \

Definition of bribe for Students

: something given or promised to a person in order to influence dishonestly a decision or action

bribe

verb

Definition of bribe for Students

bribed; bribing

: to influence or try to influence dishonestly by giving or promising something

Law Dictionary

bribe

noun

legal Definition of bribe

: a benefit (as money) given, promised, or offered in order to influence the judgment or conduct of a person in a position of trust (as an official or witness) — compare kickback