bedfellows
Partners sharing quarters
Bedfellows are people who share a bed, but the word appears almost exclusively in figurative contexts about unlikely alliances.
Politics makes strange bedfellows describes how circumstances force cooperation between people who would otherwise have nothing in common.
The singular bedfellow is rare outside this expression.
Temporary alliance for action
- partnershipShared business arrangement
- allianceFormal union of parties
- pactFormal agreement between parties
- collaborationJoint intellectual work
confederates · allies · bloc · entente · consortium · confederation · federation · league
Not apt to happen
- unexpectedNot anticipated beforehand
- incongruousNot fitting together harmoniously
- oddUnusual or not even
- unusualNot often encountered
peculiar · mismatched · incompatible · paradoxical · contradictory · disparate · ironic · anomalous
Those who accompany
- colleaguesProfessional associates
- compatriotsFellow citizens of homeland
- comradesClose allies in cause
- cohortsGroups of accomplices
accomplices · cronies · confidants · peers · collaborators · conspirators · brethren · circle
Temporary alliance for action
- bipartisanshipCooperation between political rivals
- caucusParty selection meeting
- partisanshipLoyalty to one faction
- lobbyistsPaid political persuaders
incumbent · constituency · electorate · ideology · moderates · extremists · rivals · opposition
coalition
Temporary alliance for action
- partnershipShared business arrangement
- allianceFormal union of parties
- pactFormal agreement between parties
collaboration · confederates · allies · bloc · entente · consortium · confederation · federation · league · union
unlikely
Not apt to happen
- unexpectedNot anticipated beforehand
- incongruousNot fitting together harmoniously
- oddUnusual or not even
unusual · peculiar · mismatched · incompatible · paradoxical · contradictory · disparate · ironic · anomalous · bizarre
companions
Those who accompany
- colleaguesProfessional associates
- compatriotsFellow citizens of homeland
- comradesClose allies in cause
cohorts · accomplices · cronies · confidants · peers · collaborators · conspirators · brethren · circle · clique
coalition
Temporary alliance for action
- bipartisanshipCooperation between political rivals
- caucusParty selection meeting
- partisanshipLoyalty to one faction
lobbyists · incumbent · constituency · electorate · ideology · moderates · extremists · rivals · opposition · crossover
- corruptioncorruption, graft, kickbacks, bribery, bribes
bedfellowsenemies
Hostile opposing parties
adversaries · strangers · foes · antagonists · rivals
- strange bedfellowsImprobable alliance of opposites