I. ˈtri(ˌ)byü]t also -_byə] sometimes -(ˌ)byu̇]; usu ]d.+V noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English tribut, from Latin tributum, from neuter of tributus, past participle of tribuere to bestow, grant, pay, allot, from tribus one third of the Roman people, tribe — more at tribe
1.
a. : an annual or stated sum of money or other valuable thing paid by one ruler or nation to another as an acknowledgment of submission, as the price of peace and protection, or by virtue of some treaty
foreseen that foreigners would pay tribute to the country for the right to carry away a wealth of liquid gold — P.E.James
also : the tax levied for such a payment
b.
(1) : an especially large or excessive tax, impost, duty, rental, or tariff imposed by a government, sovereign, lord, or landlord
(2) : an exorbitant or extralegal impost levied by a person or group having the power of coercion
the monopolistic combinations of war industries levied a tribute on the … consumer so wasteful that it led to proposals to draft capital — T.W.Arnold
compelled to join unions and pay tribute against their wills — M.K.Hart
c. : the liability to pay tribute
no English king had been more successful … in bringing British tribes under tribute — F.M.Stenton
2.
a. : something given or contributed voluntarily as due or deserved : an offering, gift, a service rendered, or token manifesting respect, allegiance, gratitude, or affection
floral tributes were placed at the community honor roll — Springfield (Massachusetts) Union
a surprise cocktail party — a tribute they had paid to no other person — Current Biography
build a shrine and offer tribute — Agnes Repplier
the work had been selected as a tribute in honor of the Coronation — London Calling
specifically : praise , encomium
will receive so many tributes that it may seem unnecessary to add to the general paean — Harold Nicolson
b. : something usually admirable or praiseworthy resulting from and attributable to something specified — usually used in the phrase a tribute to
this first semblance of law in the gold country is a tribute to the common sense of the majority — Julian Dana
the sarcastic and bitter opposition must be taken as a tribute to the power of the art — Arnold Bennett
3. : a proportion of the ore raised or of its value given to the miner or the owner of the land as his recompense in one system of payment
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English tributen, from tribut tribute
transitive verb
: to pay as tribute
deserve praise for the intention, and I tribute it the more willingly as it is the only praise I can give them — Bernhard Berenson
intransitive verb
: to mine on the tribute system