bed-sharing
noun
bed-shar·ing
ˈbed-ˌsher-iŋ 
variants
or bed sharing
: the practice of sleeping in the same bed with one's child
Now the practice of bed sharing appears to be coming back into favor again—and a close look at the science suggests that the context in which parents do it, and the choices they make beforehand, matter a lot in terms of safety.—
Melinda Wenner Moyer
Melinda Wenner MoyerMore and more parents are sleeping next to their infants—the percentage of bed-sharing babies has more than doubled in recent years …—Karen Springen
compare co-sleeping
Karen Springen
bed-share
intransitive verb
or
bed-shared or bed shared; bed-sharing or bed sharing; bed-shares or bed shares
Studies have found that the risk of SIDS [sudden infant death syndrome] increases anywhere from two to tenfold when parents bed-share, depending on the bed-sharing situation and the age of the baby.
—Jessica Pauline Ogilvie
Jessica Pauline Ogilvie
Examples of bed-sharing in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Co-sleeping Is More Common While the debate rages on in America about whether or not co-sleeping is safe, in many African countries, including Kenya and South Africa, as well as Latin America, co-sleeping—whether bed-sharing or room-sharing—is an accepted practice.
—
Katrina Donham,
Parents,
25 Feb. 2026
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Katrina Donham,
Parents,
25 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bed-sharing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bed-sharing. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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