bribe

\ ˈbrīb

How to pronounce bribe (audio)

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Definition of bribe

(Entry 1 of 2)

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

bribe

bribed; bribing

Definition of bribe (Entry 2 of 2)

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

Other Words from bribe Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about bribe

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Examples of bribe in a Sentence

Noun I offered the children a bribe for finishing their homework. that judge refused a huge bribe to dismiss the charges against the wealthy defendant Verb 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 on the Web: Noun In recent weeks opposition members complained of government offers of bribes to switch sides. — The Economist, "Bello A crude attempt to stifle what’s left of Venezuela’s democracy," 11 Jan. 2020 The amount Huffman paid is relatively low compared with other alleged bribes in the scheme. — Jocelyn Gecker, Anchorage Daily News, "Felicity Huffman starts serving prison time in college scam," 15 Oct. 2019 Michelle Janavs’ alleged bribes continued after Georgetown admitted Grant. — Daniel Golden, ProPublica, "An Unseen Victim of the College Admissions Scandal: The High School Tennis Champion Aced Out by a Billionaire Family," 8 Oct. 2019 After being caught on a government wiretap discussing paying bribes to players, Gassnola cut a deal with federal prosecutors from the Southern District of New York. — Michael Mccann, SI.com, "Could NCAA's Latest Notice of Allegations Against Kansas End Bill Self?," 23 Sep. 2019 Firtash has been fighting a U.S. Justice Department request for extradition to Chicago, where has was charged in a 2013 case involving alleged bribe payment to officials in India to secure mining concessions. — Greg Farrell, Bloomberg.com, "Trump-Friendly Lawyers Join Legal Team of Ukraine’s Firtash," 23 Sep. 2019 The bribe-paying basketball scandal was revealed by federal prosecutors in New York over the last two years at several trials. — Larry Neumeister, The Denver Post, "Michael Avenatti seeks trial delay amid effort to prove Nike claims," 22 Aug. 2019 Kelly allegedly used bribes to get doctored documents that showed her as 18. — Rachel Paige, refinery29.com, "Lifetime’s R. Kelly Docuseries Includes His Family — These Are Their Stories," 3 Jan. 2020 In the last two years, Gaza has had a painful brain drain of those who can afford to pay the hefty fees and bribes to exit through Egypt. — Hazem Balousha, Washington Post, "The U.N. once predicted Gaza would be ‘uninhabitable’ by 2020. Two million people still live there.," 2 Jan. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Thousands of people — either legitimately or by bribing officials — were given Indian identification documents like ration cards and election registration cards. — Washington Post, "AP EXPLAINS: How India ended up in turmoil over citizenship," 22 Jan. 2020 All 21 are charged with conspiring to bribe corrections officers. — Fox News, "Rikers Island guards charged with taking thousands of dollars in bribes to smuggle in drugs," 15 Jan. 2020 In recent weeks, the opposition and the United States government had accused Mr. Maduro of trying to block Mr. Guaidó’s re-election by bribing and harassing lawmakers. — Julie Turkewitz, New York Times, "Venezuela’s Maduro Claims Control of National Assembly, Tightening Grip on Power," 5 Jan. 2020 Prosecutors alleged that McGregor and Gilley had devised a conspiracy to bribe lawmakers. — Mike Cason | Mcason@al.com, al, "Alabama Bicentennial: 200 years of political scandals and scrapes," 4 Dec. 2019 General Motors is suing Fiat Chrysler, alleging that its crosstown rival got an unfair business advantage by bribing officials of the United Auto Workers union. — Tom Krisher, chicagotribune.com, "GM sues Fiat Chrysler, claiming bribes to UAW officials gave rival unfair advantage," 20 Nov. 2019 Jones' departure came just hours after General Motors filed a racketeering lawsuit against Fiat Chrysler, alleging that its crosstown rival got an unfair business advantage by bribing UAW officials. — CBS News, "UAW president abruptly steps down amid union bribery lawsuit brought by GM," 20 Nov. 2019 Prosecutors argue the 11 parents conspired to commit federal program bribery by bribing employees of USC to facilitate entry as fake athletic recruits. — Joey Garrison, USA TODAY, "Lori Loughlin, more parents face new bribery charge in college admissions scandal," 22 Oct. 2019 This latest indictment charges these parents with conspiracy to commit federal program bribery by bribing employees of the University of Southern California to facilitate their children’s admission there. — Christian Holub, EW.com, "Lori Loughlin, other parents hit with additional charges in college admissions scandal," 22 Oct. 2019

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.

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Last Updated

25 Jan 2020

Cite this Entry

“Bribe.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bribe. Accessed 26 January 2020.

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More Definitions for bribe

bribe

noun

English Language Learners Definition of bribe

(Entry 1 of 2)

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

bribe

verb

English Language Learners Definition of bribe (Entry 2 of 2)

: 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)

See the full definition for bribe in the English Language Learners Dictionary

bribe

\ ˈbrīb

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Kids Definition of bribe

(Entry 1 of 2)

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

bribe

bribed; bribing

Kids Definition of bribe (Entry 2 of 2)

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

bribe

Legal Definition of bribe

(Entry 1 of 2)

: 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

bribe

transitive verb

bribed; bribing

Legal Definition of bribe (Entry 2 of 2)

: to influence (a person) by giving a bribe

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WORD OF THE DAY

sublimate

to express in a more acceptable way

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