People who share the same bed together.
From Middle English 'bed' (Old English 'bedd') combined with 'mate' (from Middle Low German 'mate', meaning 'messmate' or 'companion'). The compound formed in medieval times to describe sleeping companions.
The word reveals how standardized bedding is a relatively recent invention—before the 1800s, families often slept in shifts or many people per bed, making 'bedmates' far more common than today. Bedmate relationships shaped everything from family dynamics to disease transmission rates throughout history.
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