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• mo
  mo

  noun

  moment.
• Mo
  Mo

  molybdenum.
• MO
  MO

  abbreviation

  method of operation.
• -mo
  -mo

  a suffix occurring in a series of compounds that describe book sizes according to the number of leaves formed by the folding of a single sheet of paper.
• mo.
  mo.

  abbreviation

  month.
• Mo.
  Mo.

  abbreviation

  Missouri.
• m.o.
  m.o.

  abbreviation

  mail order.
• M.O.
  M.O.

  abbreviation

  mail order.

mo

¹ American  

[moh] / moʊ /

noun

Informal.

1. moment.

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Mo ² American  

Symbol, Chemistry.

1. molybdenum.

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MO ³ American  

abbreviation

1. method of operation.

2. Missouri (approved especially for use with zip code).

3. mode of operation.

4. modus operandi.

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-mo ⁴ American  

1. a suffix occurring in a series of compounds that describe book sizes according to the number of leaves formed by the folding of a single sheet of paper.

   sixteenmo.

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mo. ⁵ American  

abbreviation

• mos
  plural

1. month.

2. months.

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Mo. ⁶ American  

abbreviation

1. Missouri.

2. Monday.

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m.o. ⁷ American  

abbreviation

1. mail order.

2. modus operandi.

3. money order.

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M.O. ⁸ American  

abbreviation

1. mail order.

2. manually operated.

3. Medical Officer.

4. method of operation.

5. mode of operation.

6. modus operandi.

7. money order.

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MO ¹ British  

abbreviation

1. Missouri

2. Medical Officer

3. modus operandi

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mo ² British  

/ məʊ /

noun

1. short for moment

2. short for moustache

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m.o. ³ British  

abbreviation

1. mail order

2. money order

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Mo ⁴ British  

symbol

1. molybdenum

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Mo. ⁵ British  

abbreviation

1. Missouri

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-mo ⁶ British  

suffix

1. (in bookbinding) indicating book size by specifying the number of leaves formed by folding one sheet of paper

   12mo, twelvemo, or duodecimo

   16mo or sixteenmo

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mo ⁷ British  

abbreviation

1. Macau

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Usage

What else does MO mean? MO—it's a multifunctional set of letters. MO is commonly used as an abbreviation for modus operandi, meaning “mode of operating or working.” It’s also commonly a postal abbreviation for Missouri. You may not always encounter mo in uppercase letters in informal contexts in digital communication. So, two other widespread, popular uses of mo you may encounter are: Mo, a guy’s name, and mo, a dialectical pronunciation of more. In the U. K. and other English-speaking places around the world, mo is a slang shortening of the word moment. How is MO pronounced?[ em-oh ] or [ moh ]What are some variants of MO?or M. O. or mo' or moWhat are some other words related to MO?

• more
• modus operandi
• Missouri

Etymology

Origin of mo¹

By shortening

Origin of -mo⁴

Combining form extracted from duodecimo

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mo Mo MO mo. Mo. m.o. M.O.

I have the Tongan seal and motto “Ko e ʻOtua mo Tonga ko hoku tofiʻa,” which means “God and Tonga are my inheritance,” tattooed on my left arm.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 5, 2023

Although history does not celebrate the first skin-eaters, cultures around the world enjoy their recipes — whether Brazilian torresmos, Canadian scrunchions, Indonesian krupuk kulit, Jewish gribenes, Mexican cueritos, Slavic cvarci or Vietnamese tóp mo.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 21, 2023

Going on hour 17 of no power with a 1 mo old.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 25, 2021

It can do all the modes that matter in terms of 4K and slow mo and handles them all super well.

From The Verge ● Sep. 21, 2021

“It only works if you hold its aerial, which means you’re too close to watch it. Wait here a mo, will you? Just off to the wood for a waz.”

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell

Remarkably, it came off the back of his lowest score the year before - although low for Mo was still upwards of 200 points.

From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026

California craft beer pioneer Stone Brewing will close three Escondido locations and lay off hundreds of workers as production moves to Paso Robles and Kansas City, Mo.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

Whether he is pulling a pint, tossing a builder's helmet in the air or running with Olympic medallist Mo Farah, the UK's new prime minister Andy Burnham has embraced social media with a deft touch.

From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026

“Loudoun was called the breadbasket of the Revolution,” said Denise Mo, executive director of the Loudoun Heritage Farm Museum.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026

"Mo taught me how to ride a bike in this park," I said as we crossed the street.

From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda

There needs to be a "different MO", he said.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

“True Haunting” is nonfiction, but the MO is Wan-ish.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2025

“That’s why it’s kind of funny that it’s sort of my MO now, because I was always being described in scripts as a mouse or like, really intelligent but lacked some sense of confidence.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2025

Back in April, Walmart announced that it was in the process of removing self-checkouts and returning to regular checkouts in its store in Shrewsbury, MO, a suburb of St. Louis.

From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2024

“Oh, big surprise. Maddie’s running away! That’s your MO anytime you come across something you don’t know how to handle.”

From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon

“It’s key that need for reform is understood, but we don’t need 6 mo. of study,” he wrote.

From New York Times ● Oct. 22, 2020

Net income, first half 158,696 Net income, 18 mo. ended December 275,622 Reo Motor Car Co.

From Time Magazine Archive

Poor St. Louis, mo. everyone has a tear or two for gritty cities facing hard times--for the Detroits, the Clevelands--but who spares a thought for the elegant dowager reduced to reusing tea bags?

From Time Magazine Archive

Slip Near Los Angeles Mr. & Mrs. A. J. Tarpley were motoring with their two daughters, Marjorie, 3 mo., and Catherine, 2.

From Time Magazine Archive

Alexander was discharged by the Supreme Court, at Trenton, Third mo. 5th.

From The Underground Railroad A Record of Facts, Authentic Narratives, Letters, &c., Narrating the Hardships, Hair-Breadth Escapes and Death Struggles of the Slaves in Their Efforts for Freedom, As Related by Themselves and Others, or Witnessed by the Author. by William Still

With one child and another on the way, the couple has since sold that house and purchased another in St. Louis, Mo. They moved to the more-affordable city to be closer to family.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 1, 2026

Production of the Stone portfolio will gradually transition to Firestone Walker’s brewery in Paso Robles, Calif., and Duvel USA’s Boulevard brewery in Kansas City, Mo., the joint statement said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

Ryan Kerner, an attorney from St. Louis, Mo., was puzzled and delighted when he saw groups of Bald-Es near Hyde Park on the day of the concert.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

After the 2014 death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., and other high-profile police killings, activists demanded that departments adopt the cameras.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

“I’d rather you didn’t ask me that," said Mo. “Let’s just act as if we were on holiday for a few days. This looks like a good place for a holiday, don’t you think?"

From "Inkheart" by Cornelia Funke

The quartet that Shorter assembled around the turn of the new millennium was his first attempt as a bandleader to revisit and expand upon the all-things-must-explode m.o. of Davis’s 1960s quintet.

From New York Times ● Mar. 2, 2023

And causing other people’s pain is not in my m.o.

From Salon ● May 2, 2019

Chanos’s m.o. is to take large short positions in stocks and wait for them to fall to what he considers fair value.

From Slate ● Jul. 6, 2018

Its m.o., sour beers and Neapolitan-style pizza, continues at the new Fremont location, but there will be an extensive fresh-pasta menu, sandwiches, tacos and a full bar with a biodynamic wine program.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 4, 2017

“That's kind of the m.o. of who wins ballgames,” USC Coach Clay Helton said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 15, 2016

Fusing couture-level spectacle with crowd-pleasing performance has long been Jacobs’ M.O.

From Salon ● Mar. 27, 2026

"I feel like in my career I've won on tough golf courses generally, so that's my M.O., I would say," said 2025 Masters runner-up Rose, who led by a shot after an opening-round 62.

From BBC ● Jan. 31, 2026

Bending Spoons’ M.O. is apparent from even a cursory look at its portfolio and record.

From Slate ● Jan. 23, 2026

With its slow pacing, shaky handheld cameras, dishwater cinematography and unnervingly extreme closeups, it feels more like an intense indie drama than a whimsical tale of a robber with a peculiar M.O.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2025

Though Mac protested he could quite well walk, the M.O. insisted on putting him on a stretcher, giving orders to the bearers to take him without delay to the hospital life-boats.

From The Tale of a Trooper by Clutha N. (Clutha Nantes) Mackenzie

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