bedfellow
noun
bed·fel·low
ˈbed-ˌfe-(ˌ)lō 
1
: one who shares a bed with another
2
: a person or thing closely associated with another : ally
political bedfellows
—often used in the phrase strange bedfellows to describe an unlikely alliance of people or thingsPolitics indeed makes strange bedfellows and on the issue of local regulation of pesticides, environmental and states' rights advocates have joined forces.—
Elena S. Rutrick
Elena S. RutrickPolities and good architecture are strange bedfellows, but in Barcelona the marriage has worked.—Cathleen McGuigan
Cathleen McGuiganExamples of bedfellow in a Sentence
a child-welfare cause that has made bedfellows of activists who are normally on opposite ends of the political spectrum
Recent Examples on the Web
Politics makes strange bedfellows.
—Ben Wedeman, CNN Money, 30 Nov. 2025
Swagger is out and socialism is in, and socialism makes for strange bedfellows.
—Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 29 Nov. 2025
Still other stories even imagine an alliance of unlikely bedfellows—once powerful liberal political reformers and conservative generals from the People’s Liberation Army, for instance—who are teaming up to admonish Xi or to replace him.
—Deng Yuwen, Foreign Affairs, 14 Nov. 2025
Aggie and Nile quickly become strange bedfellows, both using each other while also growing closer.
—Keith Langston, PEOPLE, 14 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bedfellow
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Ben Wedeman, CNN Money, 30 Nov. 2025
Swagger is out and socialism is in, and socialism makes for strange bedfellows.
—Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 29 Nov. 2025
Still other stories even imagine an alliance of unlikely bedfellows—once powerful liberal political reformers and conservative generals from the People’s Liberation Army, for instance—who are teaming up to admonish Xi or to replace him.
—Deng Yuwen, Foreign Affairs, 14 Nov. 2025
Aggie and Nile quickly become strange bedfellows, both using each other while also growing closer.
—Keith Langston, PEOPLE, 14 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bedfellow
Cite this Entry
“Bedfellow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bedfellow. Accessed 3 Dec. 2025.
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bedfellow
noun
bed·fel·low
ˈbed-ˌfel-ō
: one who shares a bed with another
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