proverb · Words worth keeping
A bribe will enter without knocking.
A bribe will enter without knocking.
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
An improper incentive can gain access to a decision that ought to depend on fair reasons. The image warns about influence slipping past normal scrutiny, rather than claiming every gift is corrupt or every decision-maker can be bought.
Example
A volunteer choosing a supplier declines a personal reward offered on condition that one company receives the order, and records the selection reasons.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
The bribe enters as an uninvited visitor that does not wait at the door. This image presents improper influence as something capable of bypassing an expected boundary. The concern is what changes the decision and whether the arrangement serves an undisclosed advantage. A useful response examines the connection between an offered benefit and the responsibility being exercised. The proverb does not prove wrongdoing from an outcome, a personal connection or an ordinary act of generosity. Nor does it imply that corruption is inevitable. It draws attention to the need for transparent reasons and appropriate boundaries when an incentive could distort a judgement.
When to use it
Use it when an incentive could bypass fair scrutiny of a decision.
Keep in mind
Distinguish improper influence from ordinary generosity; an accusation still requires evidence.
An interpretation of the words, not a claim about their earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Date unknown
- Culture
- English