I. bed 1 S1 W1 /bed/ BrE AmE noun
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: bedd ]
1 . SLEEP [uncountable and countable] a piece of furniture that you sleep on
in bed
Simon lay in bed thinking.
You should go to bed early.
She got into bed and turned out the light.
before bed (=before going to bed)
Dad has a whisky before bed.
⇨ ↑ camp bed , ↑ four-poster bed , ↑ sofa bed
2 . SEX [uncountable] informal used to refer to having sex:
I came home and found him in bed with (=having sex with) my best friend.
He wanted me to go to bed with him.
He’s been trying to get his secretary into bed.
She told me he was good in bed (=a skilful lover) .
3 . RIVER/LAKE/SEA [countable] the flat ground at the bottom of a river, lake, or sea:
the sea bed
4 . GARDEN [countable] an area of a garden, park etc that has been prepared for plants to grow in:
rose beds
5 . ROCK [countable] a layer of rock ⇨ ↑ bedrock (2)
6 . LOWEST LAYER [singular] a layer of something that forms a base that other things are put on top of
bed of
prawns on a bed of lettuce
7 . IN RIVER/WATER [countable] an area at the edge of a river or in deeper water where things grow:
an oyster bed
The birds build their nests in reed beds along the river bank.
8 . get out of bed on the wrong side British English , get up on the wrong side of the bed American English to feel slightly angry or annoyed for no particular reason
9 . not a bed of roses not a happy, comfortable, or easy situation:
Life isn’t always a bed of roses, you know.
10 . you’ve made your bed and you must lie on it spoken used to say that you must accept the results of your actions, even if they are bad
11 . put something to bed technical to complete a newspaper, magazine, or book, so that it is ready to be printed
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ go to bed
What time do you go to bed at night?
▪ get into bed/get out of bed
I usually read for a bit after I get into bed.
▪ climb into bed
Lucy climbed into bed and lay awake thinking.
▪ crawl into bed (=get into bed feeling very tired)
We finally crawled into bed at three in the morning.
▪ jump into/out of bed
I jumped out of bed and ran over to the window.
▪ get somebody out of bed (=make someone get out of bed)
His mother couldn’t get him out of bed in the mornings.
▪ stay in bed (=not get up early/at the usual time)
At the weekend it’s really nice to be able to stay in bed.
▪ make the bed (=tidy the sheets and covers after you get up)
Don’t forget to make your bed before you go out!
▪ change a bed (=put clean sheets on it)
You should change the beds at least once a fortnight.
▪ put somebody to bed (=put a child in their bed)
I put the baby to bed at 7 o'clock as usual.
▪ take to your bed written (=go to bed because you feel ill)
Guy had a stomach ache and took to his bed.
■ adjectives
▪ a single bed (=for one person)
There was only a single bed.
▪ a double bed (=a bed for two people)
Would you like a double bed or twin beds?
▪ a king-size bed (=a very big double bed)
▪ a queen-size bed (=a big bed for two people)
▪ twin beds (=two single beds in a room)
▪ bunk beds (=two single beds joined together one above the other)
The kids love sleeping in bunk beds.
▪ a spare bed (=a bed for visitors to your home)
Come and stay any time – we have a spare bed.
▪ a feather bed (=a bed with feathers in the mattress)
■ phrases
▪ the foot/head of the bed (=the bottom/top of the bed)
I woke up to find someone standing at the foot of the bed.
▪ (it’s) time for bed
She sat and sewed until it was time for bed.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ the bottom the lowest part of something:
The house is at the bottom of that hill.
|
She scrolled down to the bottom of the screen.
▪ the underneath/the underside the bottom surface on the outside of something:
You will find the serial number on the underneath of the vacuum cleaner.
▪ base the lowest part or the wide bottom part on which something stands:
The lamp has a square base.
|
He had broken a bone at the base of his spine.
▪ the foot literary the bottom of a tree, a hill, or some stairs:
There was a small village at the foot of the mountain.
▪ bed the ground at the bottom of a river, a lake, or the sea:
the sea bed
|
They found some interesting stones on the river bed.
▪ the foundations the layer of cement and stones that forms the bottom of a building:
The builders have begun laying the foundations for the house.
II. bed 2 BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle bedded , present participle bedding ) [transitive]
1 . to fix something firmly and deeply into something else
bed something in something
The foundations were bedded in cement.
2 . old-fashioned to have sex with someone
bed down phrasal verb
1 . to sleep somewhere which is not your bed and where you do not usually sleep:
Can I bed down on your sofa?
2 . bed somebody/something ↔ down to make a person or animal comfortable in a place where they do not usually sleep
3 . if a new system or arrangement beds down, problems with it are solved and it gradually starts to work in the way that it should
bed something ↔ out phrasal verb
to put plants into the ground so that they can grow