apropos
Americanadverb
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fitting; at the right time; to the purpose; opportunely.
-
Obsolete. by the way.
adjective
idioms
adjective
adverb
-
appropriately or pertinently
-
by the way; incidentally
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(preposition) with regard to; in respect of
Etymology
Origin of apropos
First recorded in 1660–70; from French à propos literally, “to purpose,” from Latin ad prōpositum; see ad-, proposition
Explanation
Apropos means regarding or appropriate to, as in: Apropos of your interest in fishing, your grandfather gave you his set of championship lures, rods, reels and lucky tackle box. Apropos is a useful word to learn. But first you have to know how to pronounce it: AP-rə-pō. Then you can conveniently change the subject of a conversation by using the expression "Apropos of nothing," which is a glib way of saying, "Oh, and by the way..." If someone's remarks are suitable and appropriate to the occasion, you can get on their good side by saying: How apropos!
Vocabulary lists containing apropos
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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The Silent Treatment: Words Plagued by Silent Letters
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This Week in Pop Culture: January 19 - 25, 2019
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
There was also a successful sell signal last summer, although that it is not apropos to the current analysis.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 16, 2026
She incorporates films as seemingly irrelevant but surprisingly apropos as the Bela Lugosi horror movie “The Black Cat” and an Astaire-Rogers musical.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 7, 2026
But her guests were apropos — it fits her music to have something soft yet vicious arriving out of nowhere to claim a lot of attention.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 15, 2024
During an appearance on The Late Show, when Stephen Colbert asked, apropos of nothing, if she has a favorite novelty flag to display at her home, Jackson laughed and offered a polite “no comment.”
From Slate • Oct. 4, 2024
The Zimbabwean proverb, “If you can walk, you can dance; if you can talk, you can sing,” is quite apropos here.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
