strange bedfellows

Cultural  

1. Unlikely companions or allies; often used in the phrase “politics makes strange bedfellows.”

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strange bedfellows Idioms  

1. A peculiar alliance or combination, as in George and Arthur really are strange bedfellows, sharing the same job but totally different in their views. Although strictly speaking bedfellows are persons who share a bed, like husband and wife, the term has been used figuratively since the late 1400s. This particular idiom may have been invented by Shakespeare in The Tempest (2:2), “Misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows.” Today a common extension is politics makes strange bedfellows, meaning that politicians form peculiar associations so as to win more votes. A similar term is odd couple, a pair who share either housing or a business but are very different in most ways. This term gained currency with Neil Simon's Broadway play The Odd Couple and, even more, with the motion picture (1968) and subsequent television series based on it, contrasting housemates Felix and Oscar, one meticulously neat and obsessively punctual, the other extremely messy and casual.

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Example Sentences

The hosts and Craig unpack the motivations behind the deal for these strange bedfellows.

From Slate

After all, children were once the target audience for the format – they're hardly strange bedfellows, and young customers are nothing new.

From BBC

If politics makes strange bedfellows, war sometimes makes strange career paths.

From The Wall Street Journal

Call them leagues, call them conferences, geographical realignment would make for some strange bedfellows.

From Los Angeles Times

The campaign has created some strange bedfellows.

From Los Angeles Times