One of the little pleasures of being in Paris is being able to buy nice flowers quite inexpensively. On Saturday mornings, I go to the fleuriste across the street from the apartment, where a wide selection of flowers is available for 2 euros (currently $2, usually about $3) a bouquet. The sign advertising the flowers always confused me: it says that the flowers are 2 euros per botte, and as far as I ever knew, that means “boot,” as in Ces bottes sont faites pour marcher—“These boots are made for walking.” It turns out that it has other meanings when talking about plant-related materials:
- la botte: boot.
- la botte (ensemble de légumes): bunch.
- la botte (ensemble de végétaux): bundle, sheaf, bale.
- la bottine: this related word refers to an ankle boot. You might know it from the wonderful French-Canadian band La Bottine Souriante.
See this music video by singer Michèle O for a great rendition of Ces bottes sont faites pour marcher (“These boots are made for walking”) in French.
Zipf's Law 