on the take

1. Accepting bribes or other illegal income, as in The commission found a number of police officers on the take. [Colloquial; first half of 1900s]

Example Sentences

And it’s not just Republicans on the take.

From Slate

“This was not politics as usual. This was politics for profit. This was a United States senator on the take,” Pomerantz said, per the New York Times.

From Salon

"This was not politics as usual. This was politics for profit. This was a United States senator on the take," she said.

From BBC

But his attorneys vehemently denied the charges and said the government failed to prove the veteran DEA agent was on the take.

From Seattle Times

Rudy Gobert of the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves got benched for a technical foul and a $100,000 fine for making a money-counting gesture at a ref after an adverse call, suggesting that the ref was on the take.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• crooked 
• fraudulent 
• nefarious 
• rotten 
• shady 
• unethical 
• unscrupulous 
• untrustworthy 
• venal