modus operandi
[ moh-duhs -op-uh-ran-dee, -dahy; Latin moh-doos -oh-pe-rahn-dee ]
/ ˈmoʊ dəs ˌɒp əˈræn di, -daɪ; Latin ˈmoʊ dus ˌoʊ pɛˈrɑn di /
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noun, plural mo·di op·e·ran·di [moh-dee -op-uh-ran-dee, moh-dahy -op-uh-ran-dahy; Latin moh-dee -oh-pe-rahn-dee]. /ˈmoʊ di ˌɒp əˈræn di, ˈmoʊ daɪ ˌɒp əˈræn daɪ; Latin ˈmoʊ di ˌoʊ pɛˈrɑn di/.
mode of operating or working: to investigate the modus operandi of the natural world.
one’s usual way of doing something: A criminal’s modus operandi can give the police a lead.Abbreviation: MO
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Origin of modus operandi
First recorded in 1645–55; New Latin: literally “mode of working”
Words nearby modus operandi
module, modulo, modulus, modulus of elasticity, modulus of rigidity, modus operandi, modus ponens, modus tollens, modus vivendi, Moe, Moebius
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
How to use modus operandi in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for modus operandi
modus operandi
/ (ˈməʊdəs ˌɒpəˈrændiː, -ˈrændaɪ) /
noun plural modi operandi (ˈməʊdiː ˌɒpəˈrændiː, ˈməʊdaɪ ˌɒpəˈrændaɪ)
procedure; method of operating
Word Origin for modus operandi
C17: from Latin
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Cultural definitions for modus operandi
modus operandi
[ (moh-duhs op-uh-ran-dee, op-uh-ran-deye) ]
The way someone does something; a characteristic method: “Her modus operandi in buying a new car always included a month of research.” This phrase, often abbreviated “m.o.,” is used by police to describe a criminal's characteristic way of committing a crime. From Latin, meaning “method of operation.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.