What it means
In British slang, a bung is a bribe or shady little payment slipped to someone to make things happen your way. You can also bung someone some cash more casually, but the word usually carries that grubby under-the-table whiff, especially when people are talking dodgy deals, bent decisions, or money changing hands where it really shouldn't.
Usage examples
"Bung the doorman a tenner and he might let you skip the queue."
"The manager was accused of taking a bung to push the transfer through."
"Word is the inspector took a bung to look the other way on the dodgy wiring."
"Slip the doorman a bung and you'll be inside before the queue even moves."
"He got the table in five minutes flat after bunging the waiter twenty quid."
Where it comes from
Bung has been in English for centuries as a verb meaning to throw, shove, or put something somewhere fast. The bribery sense grew from that older idea of bunging someone money, basically stuffing cash into their hand to grease the wheels. The shady noun sense is well established in British English.
Other ways to say it
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