mo

¹

[ moh ]

noun

, Informal.

1. moment ( def 1 ).

Mo

²

Symbol, Chemistry.

1. molybdenum.

MO

³

abbreviation for

1. method of operation.
2. Missouri (approved especially for use with zip code).
3. mode of operation.
4. modus operandi ( def 2 ).

-mo

⁴

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.

mo.

⁵

abbreviation for

, plural mos.

1. plural mos month.
2. months.

Mo.

⁶

abbreviation for

1. Missouri.
2. Monday.

m.o.

⁷

abbreviation for

1. mail order.
2. modus operandi.
3. money order.

M.O.

⁸

abbreviation for

1. mail order.
2. manually operated.
3. Medical Officer.
4. method of operation.
5. mode of operation.
6. modus operandi.
7. money order.

Mo

¹

the chemical symbol for

1. molybdenum

mo

²

the internet domain name for

1. Macau

m.o.

³

abbreviation for

1. mail order
2. money order

mo

⁴

/ məʊ /

noun

1. short for moment
2. short for moustache

Mo.

⁵

abbreviation for

1. Missouri

MO

⁶

abbreviation for

1. Missouri
2. Medical Officer
3. modus operandi

-mo

⁷

suffix forming nouns

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of mo¹

By shortening

Origin of mo²

Combining form extracted from duodecimo

Word History and Origins

Origin of mo¹

abstracted from duodecimo

Example Sentences

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), a leading voice on police demilitarization, was supportive of the White House announcement.

From The Daily Beast

Tensions are rising in Saint Louis, Mo., as race relations heat up.

From The Daily Beast

I work at a law firm in Clayton, Mo., where they are holding the grand jury for the case.

From The Daily Beast

The Daily Show was on hiatus when the tensions in Ferguson, MO escalated.

From The Daily Beast

Ferguson, Mo., had returned to a state of wary unease but early morning looting is likely to inflame things.

From The Daily Beast

He tole me I was to have all the money Miss Dory had been layin' up, an' he would send me mo' for the stun.

From Project Gutenberg

I'se done sung all day for his mussy in lettin' me heer from lil Miss Dory onc't mo' an' 'noin' she ain't ded as I feared she was.

From Project Gutenberg

I went into de woods en jedged I wouldn' fool wid raffs no mo', long as dey move de lantern roun' so.

From Project Gutenberg

Well, he sot up a bank, en say anybody dat put in a dollar would git fo' dollars mo' at de en' er de year.

From Project Gutenberg

Den I gin 'm ten cents apiece, en dey 'uz mighty well satisfied, en wisht some mo' raf's 'ud come along en make 'm rich agin.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• rule of thumb

More About MO

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 mo

What are some other words related to MO?

• more
• modus operandi
• Missouri

Where does MO come from?

The acronym MO is short for modus operandi, an expression directly from Latin meaning “way of operating.” Modus operandi was first recorded in English by the 1650s. The phrase specifically refers to the particular, often characteristic manner someone goes about doing something—later broadened to one’s “style.”

Modus operandi was adopted by early 20th-century criminologists who sought to establish patterns in crimes. These researchers identified criminals on their methods, called the modus operandi system, shortened to MO. As any fan of TV police procedurals can tell you, MO spread as an expression for a criminal’s signature pattern of committing the crime.

Starting in 1831, Mo. was the official postal abbreviation for the state of Missouri, written as MO by 1963.

Mo is also a short form of the common men’s name Muhammad or Mohammed, borne by the likes of the great British-Somali runner Mo Farah.

Furthermore, or should we say furthermo’, mo’ is a pronunciation of more in Black English, which often drops word-final Rs. (English once had, in fact, a word mo that meant “more.”) Mo’ reached the top of the Billboard charts thanks to the Notorious B.I.G.’s 1997 hit song “Mo Money Mo Problems.”

In British slang, mo is also a slang shortening of moment, as in I’ll call you in just a mo!

How is MO used in real life?

MO is a go-to shorthand for modus operandi to describe someone’s style or manner of doing things, e.g., His MO is going to coffeeshops to get his writing done.

Using mo’ for more is common in Black and Southern American English. As rapper Kendrick Lamar raps on his 2017 “XXX.”: “Johnny said books ain’t cool no mo’, no mo’.”

As the official abbreviation for Missouri, MO is very useful when addressing things to or from there.

And as Muhammad is one of the most common men’s names in the world, expect to meet lots of men who go by Mo for short.

Finally, if you’re in the U.K., drop a casual mo for moment if among friends.

More examples of MO:

“Pastry chef shows you his M.O. in the kitchen”

—Inger Sandal, Arizona Daily Star (headline), April 2010