bedfellow

[ bed-fel-oh ]

noun

1. Also called bedmate. a person who shares one's bed.
2. an associate or collaborator, especially one who forms a temporary alliance for reasons of expediency:

   Politics makes strange bedfellows.

bedfellow

/ ˈbɛdˌfɛləʊ /

noun

1. a person with whom one shares a bed
2. a temporary ally or associate

Word History and Origins

Origin of bedfellow¹

First recorded in 1400–50, bedfellow is from the late Middle English word bedfelow. See bed, fellow

Example Sentences

She said Cheney’s involvement in the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 makes him an unwanted bedfellow for her community.

From BBC

The Move Forward Party is polling second and is its ideological bedfellow in seeking to clip the military’s wings.

From Washington Times

The Move Forward Party is polling second and is its ideological bedfellow in seeking to clip the military’s wings.

From Seattle Times

After the lockdown era shut off the money spigot for Live Nation and Ticketmaster, the bedfellow corporations controlling the lion’s share of the concert industry, each posted record third quarters with revenues up by roughly two-thirds from pre-pandemic levels.

From Seattle Times

Peek inside Puerto Vallarta and you’ll discover a curious little pop-up shop inside the restaurant advertising “Himalayan Tea,” dosas, and pink salt, a theoretically strange bedfellow for a Mexican family restaurant.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• caller
• client
• companion
• customer
• inmate
• patron
• recipient
• tenant
• vacationer
• visitor