Bribe

Pronunciation: /braɪb/

Definitions of bribe

noun a sum of money or other inducement offered or given in order to persuade or influence someone to do something, especially dishonestly

Example Sentences

A1 He offered a bribe to the guard to let him in without a ticket.

A2 The politician was caught accepting a bribe in exchange for a construction contract.

B1 The company was fined for attempting to bribe government officials to secure a business deal.

B2 The CEO was implicated in a bribery scandal that rocked the corporate world.

C1 Corruption and bribery are serious offenses that can result in severe legal consequences.

C2 The investigation revealed a complex web of bribery and kickback schemes within the organization.

Examples of bribe in a Sentence

formal The politician was caught accepting a bribe in exchange for favorable legislation.

informal I heard that the cop took a bribe to let the criminal go free.

slang The contractor tried to bribe the inspector to overlook the building code violations.

figurative Sometimes kindness can be seen as a bribe for someone's affection.

Grammatical Forms of bribe

• past tense: bribed
• plural: bribes
• comparative: more bribed
• superlative: most bribed
• present tense: bribes
• future tense: will bribe
• perfect tense: has bribed
• continuous tense: is bribing
• singular: bribe
• positive degree: bribe
• infinitive: to bribe
• gerund: bribing
• participle: bribing

Origin and Evolution of bribe

First Known Use: 1250 year

Language of Origin: Old French

Story behind the word: The word 'bribe' originated from the Old French word 'briber' which meant to beg or borrow.

Evolution of the word: Over time, the meaning of 'bribe' shifted from begging or borrowing to offering money or gifts to influence someone's actions or decisions in a dishonest way.