bedridden
Americanadjective
adjective
Etymology
Origin of bedridden
1300–50; Middle English, variant (by confusion with past participle of ride ) of bedrid
Explanation
Someone who's bedridden is so sick or elderly that they can't get out of bed. Your friend might have such a bad case of the flu that she's bedridden for several days and can't go to work or school. Most people who are bedridden are terribly ill and confined to their bed — or a hospital bed — until they recover. Very old people might also be bedridden because of weakness or pain. The word comes from the Old English bæddrædæn, "bedridden man," from the roots bedd, "bed," and rida, "rider."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Woodrow Wilson lay terminally bedridden when the crash began.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026
Some elderly residents are bedridden and get no water unless a neighbour carries it up several flights in the dark.
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
Quadriplegic and bedridden in a prefabricated home, 36-year-old Li Xia can only move one finger and one toe -- yet he runs a high-tech farm in southwestern China using sensors, cameras and a computer.
From Barron's ● Jan. 29, 2026
This insight opens the possibility of developing medications that replicate the benefits of exercise, offering new hope for older adults, bedridden patients, and individuals with chronic illnesses who face a higher risk of fractures.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 27, 2026
And when he became bedridden, she turned him on his side every hour so he wouldn’t get a bedsore.
From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
