One syllable: Bribe.
breyeb
/bɹaɪb/
Bribe is pronounced breyeb (/bɹaɪb/). It has one syllable (Bribe), with the stress on "Bribe". Bribe (noun): a gift or payment offered to influence the actions of a person in a position of power. It denotes an improper motive and is intended to induce someone to act dishonestly or illegally. In practice, the term often carries a negative connotation and signals corrupt behavior or illegal persuasion. The concept spans ethics, law, and social norms in many cultures.
nounBribe (noun): a gift or payment offered to influence the actions of a person in a position of power. It denotes an improper motive and is intended to induce someone to act dishonestly or illegally. In practice, the term often carries a negative connotation and signals corrupt behavior or illegal persuasion. The concept spans ethics, law, and social norms in many cultures.
"The mayor was accused of accepting a bribe from a construction company."
"She refused the bribe and reported the incident to the authorities."
"Investigators traced the funds, uncovering a network of bribes."
Bribe is pronounced with a single stressed syllable: /braɪb/. Start with the /b/ sound, glide into the /raɪ/ diphthong (an open-mid to high front vowel gliding from /a/ to /ɪ/), and finish with a clear /b/. Imagine 'b' + 'rye' + 'b' without an extra syllable. Mouth positions: lips start neutral, then rounded slightly for /r/ with the tongue near the alveolar ridge, and finish with a nasal-free stop closure at the lips. IPA: US /braɪb/, UK /braɪb/, AU /braɪb/. Audio reference: you can compare with a standard dictionary pronunciation or a pronunciation-focused channel for confirmation.
Two common errors: 1) Adding an extra vowel and making it two syllables (e.g., ‘briaɪ-ble’). 2) Mispronouncing the diphthong as a pure /i/ or /ɪ/ sound, resulting in /briːb/ or /brīb/. Correction: keep the single syllable, with /aɪ/ as a tight glide from /a/ to /ɪ/, then close with a clean /b/. Avoid rounding the lips too early and ensure the final /b/ is released with a short burst rather than a long vowel. Practice slowly and then speed up. IPA reminder: /braɪb/.
US/UK/AU all share /braɪb/, but rhoticity isn’t a factor here since /r/ is before the diphthong. Differences are subtle: US tends to be slightly more relaxed with the diphthong; UK speakers may have a crisper onset and sharper /r/ articulation in rhotic contexts elsewhere, but for /braɪb/ the vowel quality remains the same. Australian speakers generally align with /braɪb/ but may show a marginally broader vowel in the /aɪ/ portion and a succinct release of /b/. IPA: /braɪb/ for all.
The challenge lies in producing the precise /aɪ/ diphthong within a single syllable and closing with a crisp /b/ without adding a vowel or voice onset time. Beginners often insert a schwa or mispronounce the transition between /a/ and /ɪ/, creating /brɪb/ or /braɪəb/. Also, keeping the tongue and lips coordinated to avoid a lingering vowel or an unintended /w/ or /v/ sound can be tricky. Maintain a tight, short transition from /a/ to /ɪ/ and finish with a clean /b/ closure.
A Bribe typically carries no silent letters, so the challenge is not silent letters but the exact diphthong and final stop. Some learners wonder if the final 'e' is silent; in Bribe the final 'e' is not a separate letter sound; the word is pronounced as a single syllable /braɪb/. The unique aspect is maintaining a quick, uninterrupted /aɪ/ glide into /b/ without an extra vowel. IPA reference remains /braɪb/.
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US: /braɪb/ with a slightly longer /aɪ/ and a fast, tight /b/ at the end; rhoticity not affecting this word. UK: similar /braɪb/ but you may notice a marginally crisper /b/ release and a slightly more forward tongue position for /aɪ/. AU: aligns with US/UK, with a possibly more relaxed jaw and a slightly broader /aɪ/ glide. IPA: US/UK/AU /braɪb/. Tips: practice with a mirror to ensure the /aɪ/ glides smoothly; keep the final lip closure tight but not forcibly pressed. Minimal pairs: bribe vs bripe (not common) – focus on vowel transition. Use Forvo and Cambridge/Oxford pronunciations as cross-checks.
Bribe comes from the Old French bribier, meaning to offer a gift or reward to influence someone’s actions. The word passed into Middle English as bribe, retaining the sense of an offered payment to gain favor or advantage. Its cognates appear across Romance languages with similar meanings tied to rewards or incentives. In Shakespearean and early modern English, bribe often carried legal and ethical implications, reflecting concerns about corruption and governance. Throughout the 17th–19th centuries, bribe maintained its association with illicit influence, frequently appearing in legal texts, political discourse, and criminal cases. The noun form became standard in Late Modern English, solidifying the modern sense of a covert or improper payment designed to sway decisions. Today, bribe is widely understood as a negative act involving private incentives, though the word can appear in journalism and political commentary in discussions of corruption, reform, and ethics debates.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Bribe" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "Bribe" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "Bribe"
-ife sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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