In the title coordinaltion polymer, [Cd(C(8)H(4)O(4))(C(8)H(7)N(3))(2)](n), the Cd(II) atom, lying on a twofold rotation axis, is six-coordinated by two carboxyl-ate O atoms from two benzene-1,3-dicarboxyl-ate (m-BDC) ligands and four N atoms from two chelating 2-(2-pyrid-yl)imidazole mol-ecules, forming a slightly distorted octa-hedral geometry. The m-BDC ligand is located over a twofold rotation axis. The Cd(II) atoms are bridged by the m-BDC ligands, leading to a wave-shaped chain structure along [010]. N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds connect the chains.