bribe
noun
money or any other valuable consideration given or promised with a view to corrupting the behavior of a person, especially in that person's performance as an athlete, public official, etc..
bribed
-
past participleof bribe.past participle
A verb form used in perfect and passive verb constructions and that can also function as a modifier.
-
past tense formof bribe.past tense
Used to describe completed actions or previous habitual actions.
bribenounmoney or any other valuable consideration given or promised with a view to corrupting the behavior of a person, especially in that person's performance as an athlete, public official, etc..
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Here, Matt’s friends are bribed into blabbing about his past sins, although the script doesn’t bother to tell us what exactly he’s alleged to have done or whether it’s true.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026
So their father taught them in short spurts — 20 minutes maximum, he says — and bribed them with pizza and Capri-Suns.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
Is it true, they ask, that Jefferson bribed Trumbull to make it look that way, to show that he, Jefferson, outranked Adams?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 4, 2026
Sure enough, the Taliban launched Chinese-made rockets at the base after dark, planted there, we were told, by farmers who had been either bribed or coerced into doing so.
From BBC ● Jan. 23, 2026
“No freaking way. If you go now, she’ll think I bribed you or something.”
From "Ask the Passengers" by A.S. King
