tea money
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
A bribe, especially for facilitating a business dealing.
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
tiền hối lộ, đặc biệt là để thuận tiện cho giao dịch kinh doanh
Machine-translated — suggest a fix
Register: slang
Where it’s used:
Used
American English
Examples
Low-ranking officers in Thailand’s 200,000-strong police force are poorly paid and are infamous for topping up salaries with "tea money" for everything from minor driving offences to serious crimes.
Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)
Sources & notes
Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).
Common questions
What does “tea money” mean?
A bribe, especially for facilitating a business dealing.
Is “tea money” formal or informal?
tea money is generally slang.