bed

[ bed ]

/ bɛd /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for bed on Thesaurus.com

noun

a piece of furniture upon which or within which a person sleeps, rests, or stays when not well.

the mattress and bedclothes together with the bedstead of a bed.

the bedstead alone.

the act of or time for sleeping: Now for a cup of cocoa and then bed.

the use of a bed for the night; lodging: I reserved a bed at the old inn.

the marital relationship.

any resting place: making his bed under a tree.

something resembling a bed in form or position.

a piece or area of ground in a garden or lawn in which plants are grown.

an area in a greenhouse in which plants are grown.

the plants in such areas.

the bottom of a lake, river, sea, or other body of water.

a piece or part forming a foundation or base.

a layer of rock; a stratum.

a foundation surface of earth or rock supporting a track, pavement, or the like: a gravel bed for the roadway.

Building Trades.

the underside of a stone, brick, slate, tile, etc., laid in position.
the upper side of a stone laid in position.
the layer of mortar in which a brick, stone, etc., is laid.
the natural stratification of a stone: a stone laid on bed.

Furniture. skirt (def. 6b).

the flat surface in a printing press on which the form of type is laid.

Transportation. the body or, sometimes, the floor or bottom of a truck or trailer.

Chemistry. a compact mass of a substance functioning in a reaction as a catalyst or reactant.

Sports.

the canvas surface of a trampoline.
the smooth, wooden floor of a bowling alley.
the slate surface of a billiard table to which the cloth is fastened.

Zoology. flesh enveloping the base of a claw, especially the germinative layer beneath the claw.

Also called mock, mock mold .Shipbuilding. a shaped steel pattern upon which furnaced plates for the hull of a vessel are hammered to shape.

bed and board.

verb (used with object), bed·ded, bed·ding.

to provide with a bed.

to put to bed.

Horticulture. to plant in or as in a bed.

to lay flat.

to place in a bed or layer: to bed oysters.

to embed, as in a substance: bedding the flagstones in concrete.

to take or accompany to bed for purposes of sexual intercourse.

verb (used without object), bed·ded, bed·ding.

to have sleeping accommodations: He says we can bed there for the night.

Geology. to form a compact layer or stratum.

(of a metal structural part) to lie flat or close against another part.

Archaic. to go to bed.

Verb Phrases

bed down,

to make a bed for (a person, animal, etc.).
to retire to bed: They put out the fire and decided to bed down for the night.

OTHER WORDS FOR bed

14 stratification, seam, lode, deposit.

See synonyms for bed on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about bed

get up on the wrong side of the bed, to be irritable or bad-tempered from the start of a day: Never try to reason with him when he's gotten up on the wrong side of the bed.

go to bed,

to retire, especially for the night.
to engage in sexual relations.

go to bed with, to have sexual intercourse with.

in bed,

beneath the covers of a bed.
engaged in sexual intercourse.

jump / get into bed with, to form a close, often temporary, alliance, usually with an unlikely ally: Industry was charged with jumping into bed with labor on the issue.

make a bed, to fit a bed with sheets and blankets.

make one's bed, to be responsible for one's own actions and their results: You've made your bed—now lie in it.

put to bed,

to help (a child, invalid, etc.) go to bed.
Printing. to lock up (forms) in a press in preparation for printing.
to work on the preparation of (an edition of a newspaper, periodical, etc.) up to the time of going to press.

Origin of bed

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English bedd; cognate with Old Frisian, Dutch bed, Old Saxon bed(de), Old High German betti (German Bett ), Gothic badi, from unattested Germanic badjan (neuter); akin to Latin fodere “to dig,” Old Church Slavonic bodǫ, Lithuanian bedù “I pierce,” Welsh bedd “a grave”; presumably a bed was dug out in the ground

OTHER WORDS FROM bed

bedless, adjectivebedlike, adjectivein·ter·bed, adjective

Other definitions for bed (2 of 2)

B.Ed.

abbreviation

Bachelor of Education.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

British Dictionary definitions for bed (1 of 2)

bed

/ (bɛd) /

noun

a piece of furniture on which to sleep

the mattress and bedclothes on such a piece of furniturean unmade bed

sleep or resttime for bed

any place in which a person or animal sleeps or rests

med a unit of potential occupancy in a hospital or residential institution

informal a place for sexual intercourse

informal sexual intercourse

a plot of ground in which plants are grown, esp when considered together with the plants in ita flower bed

the bottom of a river, lake, or sea

a part of this used for cultivation of a plant or animaloyster beds

a layer of crushed rock, gravel, etc, used as a foundation for a road, railway, etc

a layer of mortar in a masonry wall

the underside of a brick, tile, slate, etc, when in positionCompare back 1 (def. 12)

any underlying structure or part

a layer of rock, esp sedimentary rock

the flat part of a letterpress printing press onto or against which the type forme is placed

a layer of solid particles of an absorbent, catalyst, or reagent through which a fluid is passed during the course of a chemical reaction or other process

a machine base on which a moving part carrying a tool or workpiece slideslathe bed

a bed of roses a situation of comfort or ease

to be brought to bed archaic to give birth (to)

bed of nails

a situation or position of extreme difficulty
a bed studded with nails on which a fakir lies

get out of bed on the wrong side informal to be ill-tempered from the start of the day

go to bed

(often foll by with) to have sexual intercourse (with)
journalism printing (of a newspaper, magazine, etc) to go to press; start printing

in bed with informal cooperating closely with (another person, organization, government, etc.) esp covertly

put to bed

journalism to finalize work on (a newspaper, magazine, etc) so that it is ready to go to press
printing to lock up the type forme of (a publication) in the press before printing

take to one's bed to remain in bed, esp because of illness

verb beds, bedding or bedded

(usually foll by down) to go to or put into a place to sleep or rest

(tr) to have sexual intercourse with

(tr) to place, fix, or sink firmly into position; embed

geology to form or be arranged in a distinct layer; stratify

(tr often foll by out) to plant in a bed of soil

Word Origin for bed

Old English bedd; related to Old Norse bethr, Old High German betti, Gothic badi

British Dictionary definitions for bed (2 of 2)

BEd

abbreviation for

Bachelor of Education

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for bed

bed

[ bĕd ]

A layer of sediments or rock, such as coal, that extends under a large area and has a distinct set of characteristics that distinguish it from other layers below and above it.

The bottom of a body of water, such as a lake, stream, or ocean.

Other Idioms and Phrases with bed

bed

In addition to the idioms beginning with bed

bed and board
bed and breakfast
bed of roses

also see:

early to bed
get up on the wrong side of bed
go to bed with
make one's bed and lie in it
make the bed
put to bed
should have stood in bed
strange bedfellows