make one's bed and lie in it

verb

To create a difficult situation whose unpleasant consequences one must now endure.

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Meanings

verbmake one's bed and lie in it (third-person singular simple present makes one's bed and lies in it, present participle making one's bed and lying in it, simple past made one's bed and lay in it, past participle made one's bed and lain in it)

present singular third person makes one's bed and lies in it · participle present making one's bed and lying in it · past made one's bed and lay in it · participle past made one's bed and lain in it · alternative make one's own bed and lie in it · alternative make one's bed · alternative make one's own bed · alternative make one's bed and sleep in it · alternative make the bed one lies in

  1. idiomaticTo create a difficult situation whose unpleasant consequences one must now endure.

    It was true that he had made his own bed, and he understood the justice which required him to lie upon it.

    1861, Anthony Trollope, chapter 27, in Framley Parsonage
    5 more examples

    [...] one of the falsest of proverbs is that you must lie on the bed that you have made. The experience of life shows that people are constantly doing things which must lead to disaster, and yet by some chance manage to evade the result of their folly.

    1919, W[illiam] Somerset Maugham, “chapter 33”, in The Moon and Sixpence, [New York, N.Y.]: Grosset & Dunlap Publishers […], →OCLC

    Harry said, "It's too bad, but of course we couldn't attempt to smuggle him. The old man has made his bed and he must lie in it."

    1949, Upton Sinclair, O Shepherd, Speak! Part I, reprinted, published 2001, →ISBN, page 120

    What has happened is that all the horrible moves he made during his first term . . . are perfectly evident to all. Bush made his bed during his first four years, and now he has to lie in it.

    2005 November 26, Bob Kropfli, “Letters: Second-Term Blues”, in Time

    “Saakashvili made his own bed,” said Nick Witney, a senior fellow at the European Council on Foreign Affairs and the former chief executive of the European Defense Agency. “It was a pretty catastrophic miscalculation.”

    2008 August 21, Steven Erlanger, “Europe Grows Impatient as Delays Pile Up in Georgia”, in New York Times, retrieved 27 Jun 2011

    He had made his own bed, chosen his own course in life, taking the path of easy money over hard work and initiative.

    2010, Arlynn Leiber Presser, Blue-Jeaned Prince, →ISBN, page 149

Translations

Finnish kiehua omassa liemessään, niin makaat kuin petaat
  • kiehua omassa liemessäänto create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
  • niin makaat kuin petaatto create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
French comme on fait son lit, on se couche
  • comme on fait son lit, on se coucheto create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
Hungarian ki mint veti ágyát, úgy alussza álmát
  • ki mint veti ágyát, úgy alussza álmátto create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
Italian hai voluto la bicicletta? adesso pedala, hai voluto la bicicletta e adesso pedala
  • hai voluto la bicicletta? adesso pedalato create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
  • hai voluto la bicicletta e adesso pedalato create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
Japanese 自業自得
  • 自業自得 (jigōjitouku)to create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
Korean 자업자득
  • 자업자득 (ja'eopjadeuk)to create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
Lithuanian kaip pasiklosi, taip išmiegosi, kad prisivirei košės, tai ir srėbk
  • kaip pasiklosi, taip išmiegosito create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
  • kad prisivirei košės, tai ir srėbkto create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
Norwegian Bokmål som man reder, så ligger man
  • som man reder, så ligger manto create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
Polish nawarzyć piwa
  • nawarzyć piwato create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
Spanish quien mala cama hace en ella se yace, a lo hecho, pecho
  • quien mala cama hace en ella se yaceto create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
  • a lo hecho, pechoto create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
Swedish som man bäddar får man ligga, den som sig i leken ger, får leken tåla
  • som man bäddar får man liggato create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
  • den som sig i leken ger, får leken tålato create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
Turkish kendin ettin, kendin buldun
  • kendin ettin, kendin buldunto create a difficult situation and endure unpleasant consequences
Cite this entry
APA

make one's bed and lie in it. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/make%20one's%20bed%20and%20lie%20in%20it

MLA

“make one's bed and lie in it.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/make%20one's%20bed%20and%20lie%20in%20it. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “make one's bed and lie in it,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/make%20one's%20bed%20and%20lie%20in%20it.

Source: make one's bed and lie in it on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.