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
Natalie Demaree, Miami Herald, 21 Mar. 2025
With the entire scheme laid out and the staff caught red-handed, the district threatens to suspend any teacher taking bribes.
—Ile-Ife Okantah, Vulture, 19 Mar. 2025
Barbara Sprunt, NPR, 27 Mar. 2025
Although the people accused of bribing Jenkins did not receive proper training, they were given roles as law enforcement officials, prosecutors said.
—Natalie Demaree, Miami Herald, 21 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bribe
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Noun
According to the indictment, Jenkins took the bribes from those three men, along with at least five others and two undercover FBI agents.
—Natalie Demaree, Miami Herald, 21 Mar. 2025
With the entire scheme laid out and the staff caught red-handed, the district threatens to suspend any teacher taking bribes.
—Ile-Ife Okantah, Vulture, 19 Mar. 2025
Verb
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Florida Republican Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna is accusing leaders from her own party of threatening and bribing other lawmakers to block her effort to allow proxy voting for new parents in the House of Representatives.
—Barbara Sprunt, NPR, 27 Mar. 2025
Although the people accused of bribing Jenkins did not receive proper training, they were given roles as law enforcement officials, prosecutors said.
—Natalie Demaree, Miami Herald, 21 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bribe
Cite this Entry
“Bribe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bribe. Accessed 5 Apr. 2025.
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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