bribe

bribe — noun

1. money, gifts, or another reward secretly offered to make a person with power hel

1.nounC1
Definition

money, gifts, or another reward secretly offered to make a person with power help you in a wrong or unfair way.

Example

The builder slipped the inspector a bribe before the safety check.

slip someone a bribe

Police found envelopes of cash used as bribes in the mayor's desk.

cash bribe / bribes

Common collocations
  • pay a bribe
  • offer a bribe
  • take a bribe
  • cash bribe
  • political bribe
Synonyms
  • payoff

    informal; often suggests money given secretly to secure silence or cooperation

  • kickback

    a secret payment returned from a business deal, especially after a contract

  • hush money

    money paid specifically to keep someone quiet

Grammar Patterns

give/pay a bribe to + person

take/accept a bribe from + person

Usage Note

Common with verbs like 'give', 'offer', 'pay', 'take', and 'accept'. The receiver is usually someone with official power, such as an inspector, police officer, or judge. Distinguish from an ordinary gift: a bribe is meant to change the person's behaviour unfairly.

Common Mistakes

They paid a bribe for the guard.
They paid a bribe to the guard.
the person who receives the money follows 'to'.

bribe — verb

Word family

  • bribery
    nounC2
  • briber
    nounC2
  • bribable
    adjectiveC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

'Bribe' is the clearest neutral word when someone gives money or another reward to get an unfair favour. 'Buy off' is more informal and often suggests stopping trouble or gaining silence rather than controlling every action. 'Pay off' is also informal; in news reports it often means secretly giving money to make a person cooperate. 'Corrupt' is broader and more formal: one bribe can corrupt an official, but a corrupt system may involve many dishonest acts, not only cash payments. Use 'bribe' when you want the specific act. Use 'corrupt' when you want the wider moral or political damage. Compare: 'They bribed the guard to open the gate' versus 'Years of easy money corrupted the whole department.'

bribe ↗buy off ↗pay off ↗corrupt ↗

Common collocations

Phrases

  • offer a bribe
  • pay a bribe
  • take a bribe
  • bribe someone to do something
  • bribe someone with cash

Etymology

Old FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

The word came into English in the late Middle Ages from Old French 'bribe', which first meant a scrap or small handout. A related French verb meant begging or living by trickery. In English, the idea moved from a small gift or handout to money or valuables given secretly to win dishonest help.