Word.ws English Dictionary

à propos de bottes

Syllables: à pro·pos de bottesUK/ˌæpɹəˌpəʊ də ˈbɒt(s)/US/ˌæpɹəˌpoʊ də ˈbɑt(s)/

à propos de bottes adverb: apropos of nothing; without connection to anything; by the way, unrelatedly.

Adverb

à propos de bottes

  1. (dated) Apropos of nothing; without connection to anything; by the way, unrelatedly.
    • In fact, the renovated appearance of this monster—à propos de bottes, as one may say—had already excited considerable sensation among the population of Hazeldean.1853, Pisistratus Caxton [pseudonym; Edward Bulwer-Lytton], chapter XI, in “My Novel”; Or Varieties in English Life […], volume I, Edinburgh; London: William Blackwood and Sons, →OCLC, book first...
    • 'That is a strange remark,' said he; 'and à propos de bottes, I never continue a cigar when once the ash is fallen;[…]'1885, Robert Louis Stevenson, Fanny Van de Grift Stevenson, “Narrative of the Spirited Old Lady”, in More New Arabian Nights: The Dynamiter, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., →OCLC, page 86

Examples of à propos de bottes in a sentence

  • Suddenly jumped up; shook fist at back of ASQUITH's unoffending head, and, à propos de bottes, "wanted to know about the swindling companies and their shareholders?"1892 May 14, “Essence of Parliament — Extracted from the Diary of Toby, M.P.”, in Punch, or the London Charivari, volume 102, 2005...
  • Moody, restless, and unhappy, he wandered like a ghost about the town, bursting into soliloquies in public places, or asking odd questions, suddenly, à propos de bottes.1921, Lytton Strachey, “Marriage”, in Queen Victoria, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC, section VI, page 138:
  • And suddenly, à propos de bottes, he told me about his friend and how he died to save him.1944, W. Somerset Maugham, chapter IV, in The Razor's Edge, Pan Books 1977, page 184:

Forms of à propos de bottes

alternative forma propos de bottes

Origin of à propos de bottes

Unadapted borrowing from French à propos de bottes (literally “on the subject of boots”).

Questions about à propos de bottes

What does à propos de bottes mean?
À propos de bottes means apropos of nothing; without connection to anything; by the way, unrelatedly.
How do you use à propos de bottes in a sentence?
Suddenly jumped up; shook fist at back of ASQUITH's unoffending head, and, à propos de bottes, "wanted to know about the swindling companies and their shareholders?"
What part of speech is à propos de bottes?
À propos de bottes is an adverb.
How do you pronounce à propos de bottes?
À propos de bottes is pronounced /ˌæpɹəˌpəʊ də ˈbɒt(s)/ (UK).

Words near à propos de bottes in the dictionary

  1. à la mode
  2. à la nage
  3. à la russe
  4. à outrance
  5. à propos
  6. à propos de bottes
  7. à rouet
  8. à trois
  9. àpropos
  10. Áed Ruad
  11. Água Grande

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: à propos de bottes (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this entry: “à propos de bottes.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/%C3%A0_propos_de_bottes. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.