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
bribed; bribing
: 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
: to practice bribery
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
Cnn Staff, CNN Money, 17 Feb. 2026
Prosecutors say participants in the Midas scheme squeezed nuclear company Energoatom’s contractors for bribes to complete projects, including structures to protect energy facilities from Russian airstrikes.
—Reuters, NBC news, 16 Feb. 2026
Cayla Bamberger, New York Daily News, 13 Feb. 2026
Even without bribing the bots to provide direct advertising, brands are already trying to find ways to get into the good books of AI search results.
—Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for bribe
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Noun
Alejandro Toledo, who was elected president after Fujimori, was sentenced to more than 20 years in prison for receiving millions in bribes from the Brazilian construction company Odebrecht.
—Cnn Staff, CNN Money, 17 Feb. 2026
Prosecutors say participants in the Midas scheme squeezed nuclear company Energoatom’s contractors for bribes to complete projects, including structures to protect energy facilities from Russian airstrikes.
—Reuters, NBC news, 16 Feb. 2026
Verb
When those efforts were ineffective, Roefaro bribed Taylor with tens of thousands of dollars in cash payments, between which Taylor issued a memo recommending the NYPD award the company a contract worth more than $11 million, according to the indictment.
—Cayla Bamberger, New York Daily News, 13 Feb. 2026
Even without bribing the bots to provide direct advertising, brands are already trying to find ways to get into the good books of AI search results.
—Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for bribe
Cite this Entry
“Bribe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bribe. Accessed 19 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
bribe
1 of 2 noun
: something given or promised to a person in order to influence a decision or action dishonestly
bribe
2 of 2 verb
bribed; bribing
: to influence or try to influence by a bribe
briber
noun
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