贿赂

• Pinyin: huì lù
• Hanzi breakdown: 贿 = 贝 + 有 (shell/money + have, valuables/bribe); 赂 = 贝 + 各 (shell/money + each, to give gifts/bribe)

Meaning

To bribe; a bribe. The act of offering money, gifts, or other benefits to improperly influence a person in a position of authority.

Encompasses both the act (行贿 = giving bribes; 受贿 = accepting bribes) and the bribe itself as a noun. Central to anti-corruption discourse in China. Carries strong negative and legal connotations and appears frequently in judicial verdicts, official reports, and investigative journalism.

Examples

1. 调查结果显示，该官员在任职期间多次收受贿赂，涉案金额累计逾千万元人民币。 The investigation found that the official accepted bribes many times while in office, with the total amount involved exceeding ten million yuan.
2. 任何试图以金钱或物品贿赂执法人员的行为，均属严重违法，将受到法律的严惩。 Any attempt to bribe law enforcement officers with money or goods is a serious crime and will be punished severely.
3. 反腐败机构正在对这家建筑公司涉嫌在招标过程中行贿的相关指控展开深入调查。 The anti-corruption agency is conducting an in-depth investigation into allegations that this construction company bribed officials during the bidding process.

Usage Guide

Context: legal, politics, anti-corruption, business

Tone: negative

Do Say

• 该案涉及的贿赂金额触目惊心，被告在长达十余年的时间里系统性地收受来自多家企业的巨额贿赂，严重扭曲了市场竞争秩序。(The amount of bribery involved in this case is staggering: the defendant systematically accepted enormous bribes from multiple companies over a period of more than ten years, severely distorting the order of market competition.)
• 廉洁文化的建设不能仅依靠事后的惩罚机制，更需要从源头上消除滋生贿赂行为的制度漏洞和利益输送渠道。(Building a culture of integrity cannot rely solely on after-the-fact punishment mechanisms; it is even more necessary to eliminate from the source the institutional loopholes and channels for vested interests that give rise to bribery.)

Don't Say

• 贿赂 for legitimate gifts or incentives — use 礼物 or 激励; 贿赂 exclusively refers to illicit payments or gifts intended to improperly influence the conduct of a person in a position of trust or authority

Origin & History

贿 (valuables/bribe) + 赂 (give gifts/bribe) — both components relate to the illicit giving of valuables

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal