as in lured
to influence someone with a bribe
meat inspectors were bribed, and the contaminated beef was sold to the public
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Recent Examples of bribed
Reviewing fake CDLs experts say are sometimes issued by unscrupulous American trucking schools or bribed Mexican bureaucrats.
—
Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2025
But the vast majority of officials caught stealing, being bribed or taking kickbacks become footnotes in local history, with the cost of the graft passed on to taxpayers.
—Joe Mahr, Chicago Tribune, 22 Dec. 2024
As part of this scheme Da Ying Sze bribed TD Bank employees in order to deposit large amounts of cash –occasionally in excess of one million dollars in a single day —- into accounts not formally under his control.
—Steve Weisman, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024
Even the execution guards were bribed to not shoot.
—Abc News, ABC News, 10 Dec. 2024
Workers are frequently coached, records falsified and inspectors bribed to present idealized conditions during the brief time audits take place.
—Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 3 Sep. 2019
Judges, for instance, may be bribed, bullied, or blackmailed into compliance, or be publicly vilified as incompetent, corrupt, or unpatriotic.
—Robert Mickey, Foreign Affairs, 17 Apr. 2017
Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2025
But the vast majority of officials caught stealing, being bribed or taking kickbacks become footnotes in local history, with the cost of the graft passed on to taxpayers.
—Joe Mahr, Chicago Tribune, 22 Dec. 2024
As part of this scheme Da Ying Sze bribed TD Bank employees in order to deposit large amounts of cash –occasionally in excess of one million dollars in a single day —- into accounts not formally under his control.
—Steve Weisman, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024
Even the execution guards were bribed to not shoot.
—Abc News, ABC News, 10 Dec. 2024
Workers are frequently coached, records falsified and inspectors bribed to present idealized conditions during the brief time audits take place.
—Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 3 Sep. 2019
Judges, for instance, may be bribed, bullied, or blackmailed into compliance, or be publicly vilified as incompetent, corrupt, or unpatriotic.
—Robert Mickey, Foreign Affairs, 17 Apr. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bribed
Verb
-
After being lured into fighting by social media, prospective foreign volunteers have to fill out an online application before being contacted for an interview.—
Rebecca Johns,
Miami Herald,
6 Sep. 2025
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Like so many adolescents, the 27-year-old New York native left piano behind, lured by the siren call of, well, literally anything else.—
Mia Galuppo,
HollywoodReporter,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Technology plays a role, but Hughes cautions against being seduced by high-profile projects at the expense of less visible but more foundational work.—
Felicia Jackson,
Forbes.com,
26 Aug. 2025
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Armisen voices a number of droll characters and is hilariously — and fittingly — deadpan as the figure of Death who becomes seduced by show biz via a clever agent (Kind).—
Frank Rizzo,
Variety,
23 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Consider Dubai, a dynamic playground that draws thousands of millionaires each year, enticed by its unmatched digital infrastructure and lavish lifestyle offerings.—
Murad Salikhov,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
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As of May, the prospect of infrastructure investment and a link to the world’s second largest economy has enticed up to 150 countries — representing around 40% of global GDP — to join the BRI through Memoranda of Understanding with China, the GFDC added.—
Holly Ellyatt,
CNBC,
29 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Fugitive Chicago bank president Paul Stensland — who fled the city with more than $1 million — was tracked down in Tangier, Morocco, by the Tribune, which persuaded him to surrender and tell his story.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Sep. 2025
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Preparation for this might involve ensuring that proprietary and legacy systems can be persuaded to play nicely with agents.—
Bernard Marr,
Forbes.com,
1 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In truth, you’re tempted to do the exact opposite of anything that anyone tells you.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
6 Sep. 2025
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However, she could be tempted to break that pattern in order to celebrate her WAG promotion from girlfriend to fiancée.—
Emily Tannenbaum,
Glamour,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Abusers and traffickers are exploiting this lack of oversight—leaving women coerced, deceived, and sometimes poisoned.—
Christa Brown,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Sep. 2025
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This cover-up is the dark secret that poisoned the family for years.—
Isabella Wandermurem,
Time,
29 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Savage is a former child star who had his breakout role in the 1987 film The Princess Bride.—
Emily Blackwood,
PEOPLE,
5 Sep. 2025
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Brazzell had another touchdown later in the game on a hook-and-lateral in the fourth.—
Cody Thorn,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Wallets, coins, and rings are carelessly passed around this little society, and messages are corrupted—from Orsino’s wooing of Olivia, which is accidentally undone by his own go-between, Viola, to the letters that deceive Malvolio.—
Helen Shaw,
New Yorker,
22 Aug. 2025
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There’s a lingering question of whether Dance Mom was a fraud from the beginning or if she gets corrupted as a result of becoming famous overnight as a regular guest on Late Night.—
Pamela McClintock,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bribed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bribed. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.
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