# 同床异梦

tóng chuáng yì mèng

Appear united while pursuing different aims

## Meaning & wording

**Literally:** Share a bed but dream different dreams

**Traditional Chinese:** 同床異夢

**Register:** Critical · expressive

[People & connection](https://chinese-idioms.yudis.dev/idioms/topics/relationships)

## When to use it

Describe partners whose goals secretly diverge.

Can concern business or politics, not just marriage.

## Understanding the expression

Sharing a bed suggests closeness, but separate dreams reveal an inward difference that appearances conceal. The expression describes a couple, partnership, or alliance whose members want incompatible outcomes. Cooperation may continue on the surface while trust weakens underneath. Different preferences alone do not necessarily fit: partners can openly negotiate them. The distinctive feature is an apparent unity that hides conflicting agendas, especially when the parties do not acknowledge those differences.

## Examples

两家合资企业同床异梦。

### Traditional Chinese

兩家合資企業同床異夢。

liǎng jiā hé zī qǐ yè tóng chuáng yì mèng 。

The two joint-venture partners have conflicting aims beneath their apparent unity.

他们表面合作，实则同床异梦。

### Traditional Chinese

他們表面合作，實則同床異夢。

tā men biǎo miàn hé zuò ， shí zé tóng chuáng yì mèng 。

They cooperate outwardly but actually pursue different goals.

夫妻若同床异梦，需要坦诚沟通。

### Traditional Chinese

夫妻若同床異夢，需要坦誠溝通。

fū qī ruò tóng chuáng yì mèng ， xū yào tǎn chéng gōu tōng 。

A couple with divergent inner aims needs honest communication.

这个联盟同床异梦，很快瓦解。

### Traditional Chinese

這個聯盟同床異夢，很快瓦解。

zhè ge lián méng tóng chuáng yì mèng ， hěn kuài wǎ jiě 。

The alliance’s members had different agendas, and it soon collapsed.

## Sources & reference checks

Original explanations and examples from Chinese Idioms Almanac. Source-checked October 6, 2026.

- [CC-CEDICT · forms & pronunciation](https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?page=worddict&wdqb=%E5%90%8C%E5%BA%8A%E7%95%B0%E5%A4%A2)

- [Ministry of Education · 成語典](https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/idiomView.jsp?ID=848&webMd=1&la=0)

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