bedfellow

UK: /ˈbɛdfɛləʊ/ US: /ˈbɛdˌfɛloʊ/ ,(bed′fel′ō)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

bed•fel•low /ˈbɛdˌfɛloʊ/   n. [countable]

1. a person who joins with another for a short time because it is useful or profitable to do so:
   Politics makes strange bedfellows.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

bed•fel•low  (bed′fel′ō), n. 

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

• late Middle English bedfelow. See bed, fellow 1400–50

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

bedfellow / ˈbɛdˌfɛləʊ/ noun

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