---
title: bribe — school dictionary · trees and pragmatics
description: «bribe» in the school dictionary: Money or a gift given to someone to make them do something dishonest or unfair, such as break a rule. Every meaning for a pupil with its dependency tree and pragmatics.
---

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# bribe

<!-- .vintro -->
**Who acts:** Money, you, child, guard, thief, It · **What happens:** give, make, do, offer, want, get · **To what, where:** Money, someone, something, someone money, treat, child · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
«bribe» in the school dictionary: its 3 meanings for a pupil and its 8 examples, every sentence parsed by Mova itself — its syntax tree, a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies, and its pragmatics clause by clause. The word in the dictionary, with its sense in the lessons: [bribe in the school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/bribe.md).

## Meaning 1 {#m1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Money or a gift given to someone to make them do something dishonest or unfair, such as break a rule.

<!-- fold The tree, 20 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bribe:m1:1
# text = Money or a gift given to someone to make them do something dishonest or unfair, such as break a rule.
1	Money	money	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
2	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	4	cc	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	gift	gift	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	conj	_	_
5	given	give	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	1	acl	_	_
6	to	to	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	5	obl	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	9	mark	_	_
9	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	advcl	_	_
10	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	obj	_	_
11	do	do	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	9	xcomp	_	_
12	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	11	obj	_	_
13	dishonest	dishonest	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	12	amod	_	_
14	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	15	cc	_	_
15	unfair	unfair	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	13	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	21	punct	_	_
17	such	such	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos|ExtPos=ADP	19	case	_	_
18	as	as	ADP	IN	_	17	fixed	_	_
19	break	break	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	21	compound	_	_
20	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	21	det	_	_
21	rule	rule	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	12	conj	_	SpaceAfter=No
22	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give** | participle |  | Money or a gift *not said here* | someone |  |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V PP.recipient»: agent=Agent to someone=Recipient |
| 2 | **make** | to-infinitive |  | Money |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **do** | infinitive | Money *not said here* | something |  |  |  |  | vn act-114-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent something=Eventuality |

<!-- .note -->
One row per clause the reader finds. «not said here»: a role filled from the clause above. «roles by»: a VerbNet class and frame when one fits the verb, else the reader's rules on the tree.

## Meaning 2 {#m2}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: verb — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
To offer someone money or a gift to make them do what you want, often wrongly.

<!-- fold The tree, 16 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bribe:m2:1
# text = To offer someone money or a gift to make them do what you want, often wrongly.
1	To	to	PART	TO	_	2	mark	_	_
2	offer	offer	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	someone	someone	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	4	compound	_	_
4	money	money	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	or	or	CCONJ	CC	_	7	cc	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	gift	gift	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	conj	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	9	mark	_	_
9	make	make	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	advcl	_	_
10	them	they	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=3|PronType=Prs	9	obj	_	_
11	do	do	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	9	xcomp	_	_
12	what	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	14	obj	_	_
13	you	you	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Person=2|PronType=Prs	14	nsubj	_	_
14	want	want	VERB	VBP	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=2|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	ccomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
15	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	17	punct	_	_
16	often	often	ADV	RB	_	17	advmod	_	_
17	wrongly	wrongly	ADV	RB	_	2	advmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **offer** | to-infinitive |  | someone money or a gift |  |  |  | wrongly *property* | vn future\_having-13.3 «NP V NP.theme (PP)»: agent=Agent money=Theme |
| 2 | **make** | to-infinitive |  | money |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **do** | infinitive | money *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 4 | **want** | present | you |  |  |  |  |  | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP ADV»: agent=Pivot what=Theme |

## Meaning 3 {#m3}

<!-- .note -->
Usage: informal, joking — kept apart, not parsed.

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A treat given to get a child to do something ("a sweet as a bribe").

<!-- fold The tree, 15 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bribe:m3:1
# text = A treat given to get a child to do something ("a sweet as a bribe").
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	treat	treat	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	given	give	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	2	acl	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	get	get	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	advcl	_	_
6	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	child	child	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
8	to	to	PART	TO	_	9	mark	_	_
9	do	do	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	xcomp	_	_
10	something	something	PRON	NN	Number=Sing|PronType=Ind	9	obj	_	_
11	(	(	PUNCT	-LRB-	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	"	"	PUNCT	``	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	14	det	_	_
14	sweet	sweet	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	10	appos	_	_
15	as	as	ADP	IN	_	17	case	_	_
16	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	17	det	_	_
17	bribe	bribe	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	14	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
18	"	"	PUNCT	''	_	17	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	)	)	PUNCT	-RRB-	_	14	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
20	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give** | participle |  | a treat *not said here* |  |  |  |  | vn break\_down-45.8 «NP V»: agent=Patient |
| 2 | **get** | to-infinitive |  | a child |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **do** | to-infinitive | a child *not said here* | something |  |  |  |  | vn act-114-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent something=Eventuality |

## Example 1 {#x1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The guard took a bribe and let the thief go.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bribe:x1:1
# text = The guard took a bribe and let the thief go.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	guard	guard	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	took	take	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	bribe	bribe	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	_
6	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	7	cc	_	_
7	let	let	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	3	conj	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	thief	thief	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	_
10	go	go	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	7	xcomp	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **take** | past | the guard | a bribe |  |  |  |  | vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent bribe=Theme |
| 2 | **let** | infinitive | the guard *not said here* | the thief |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 3 | **go** | infinitive | the thief *not said here* |  |  |  |  |  | vn disappearance-48.2-1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |

## Example 2 {#x2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It is against the law to bribe a police officer.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bribe:x2:1
# text = It is against the law to bribe a police officer.
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	5	nsubj	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	5	cop	_	_
3	against	against	ADP	IN	_	5	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	law	law	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
6	to	to	PART	TO	_	7	mark	_	_
7	bribe	bribe	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	5	acl	_	_
8	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
9	police	police	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	compound	_	_
10	officer	officer	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | It |  |  |  |  | against the law | tree rules |
| 2 | **bribe** | to-infinitive |  | a police officer |  |  |  |  | vn compel-59.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent officer=Patient |

## Example 3 {#x3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Mum bribed us with ice cream to tidy our rooms.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bribe:x3:1
# text = Mum bribed us with ice cream to tidy our rooms.
1	Mum	mum	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	bribed	bribe	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	us	we	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs	2	obj	_	_
4	with	with	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	ice	ice	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	cream	cream	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obl	_	_
7	to	to	PART	TO	_	8	mark	_	_
8	tidy	tidy	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	advcl	_	_
9	our	our	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Plur|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
10	rooms	room	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	8	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **bribe** | past | Mum | us |  |  |  | with ice cream | vn compel-59.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent we=Patient |
| 2 | **tidy** | to-infinitive | Mum *not said here* | our rooms |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## Example 4 {#x4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The judge refused the bribe.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bribe:x4:1
# text = The judge refused the bribe.
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	judge	judge	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nsubj	_	_
3	refused	refuse	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
5	bribe	bribe	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
6	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **refuse** | past | the judge | the bribe |  |  |  |  | vn reject-77.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent bribe=Theme |

## Example 5 {#x5}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
I won't take a bribe, said the referee.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bribe:x5:1
# text = I won't take a bribe, said the referee.
1	I	I	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Number=Sing|Person=1|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	wo	will	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	SpaceAfter=No
3	n't	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	4	advmod	_	_
4	take	take	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	bribe	bribe	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	8	punct	_	_
8	said	say	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	4	parataxis	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	10	det	_	_
10	referee	referee	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	4	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **take** | future | I | a bribe |  |  |  |  | vn bring-11.3 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent bribe=Theme |
| 2 | **say** *speech: assert* | past | the referee |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent |

## Example 6 {#x6}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
My little brother can be bribed with stickers.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bribe:x6:1
# text = My little brother can be bribed with stickers.
1	My	my	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Number=Sing|Person=1|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	3	nmod:poss	_	_
2	little	little	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	brother	brother	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	nsubj:pass	_	_
4	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	6	aux	_	_
5	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	6	aux:pass	_	_
6	bribed	bribe	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
7	with	with	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	stickers	sticker	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	6	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **bribe** | can · passive |  | My little brother |  |  |  | with stickers | vn compel-59.1-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Patient |

## Example 7 {#x7}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Offering a bribe can lead to prison.

```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bribe:x7:1
# text = Offering a bribe can lead to prison.
1	Offering	offer	VERB	VBG	VerbForm=Ger	5	csubj	_	_
2	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	bribe	bribe	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
4	can	can	AUX	MD	VerbForm=Fin	5	aux	_	_
5	lead	lead	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
6	to	to	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	prison	prison	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obl	_	SpaceAfter=No
8	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	5	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **offer** | gerund |  | a bribe |  |  |  |  | vn future\_having-13.3 «NP V NP.theme (PP)»: agent=Agent bribe=Theme |
| 2 | **lead** | can | Offering |  |  |  |  | to prison | vn result-27.2 «NP V PP»: agent=Precondition to prison=Patient |

## Example 8 {#x8}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Eriphyle, unable to withstand the tempting bait, accepted the bribe, and thus Amphiaraus was compelled to join the army.

<!-- fold The tree, 19 words -->
```conllu
# sent_id = dict:school:bribe:x8:1
# text = Eriphyle, unable to withstand the tempting bait, accepted the bribe, and thus Amphiaraus was compelled to join the army.
1	Eriphyle	Eriphyle	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	10	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	3	punct	_	_
3	unable	unable	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	1	amod	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	withstand	withstand	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	3	xcomp	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	tempting	tempting	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	bait	bait	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
9	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	1	punct	_	_
10	accepted	accept	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
11	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	12	det	_	_
12	bribe	bribe	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	10	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	18	punct	_	_
14	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	18	cc	_	_
15	thus	thus	ADV	RB	_	18	advmod	_	_
16	Amphiaraus	Amphiaraus	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	18	nsubj	_	_
17	was	be	AUX	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	18	aux:pass	_	_
18	compelled	compel	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	10	conj	_	_
19	to	to	PART	TO	_	20	mark	_	_
20	join	join	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	18	xcomp	_	_
21	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	22	det	_	_
22	army	army	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	20	obj	_	SpaceAfter=No
23	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	10	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **withstand** | to-infinitive | Eriphyle *not said here* | the tempting bait |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **accept** | past | Eriphyle | the bribe |  |  |  |  | vn obtain-13.5.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent bribe=Theme |
| 3 | **compel** | past · passive |  | Amphiaraus |  |  |  | thus *property* | vn compel-59.1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: subject=Patient clause=Result |
| 4 | **join** | to-infinitive |  | the army |  |  |  |  | vn mix-22.1-2-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent army=Patient |

<!-- div src -->

**Text:** the school dictionary of Mova's schools (`world/data/dictionary-schools/`), written for Mova. **Trees:** Mova's own parse — the `en` model on the CPU, when the site is built — not checked by a teacher; they may be wrong. **Frames:** Mova's frames reader (`prag`), each meaning and example read on its own. Elamur Cosmic License.

<!-- /div -->

<!-- pn -->
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