modus operandi

[moh-duhs op-uh-ran-dee, -dahy, moh-doos oh-pe-rahn-dee]

noun

plural

modi operandi 

1. a mode of operating or working.

   The aim of a scientist is to investigate the modus operandi of the natural world.

2. one’s usual way of doing something: MO

   A criminal’s modus operandi can give the police a lead.

modus operandi

/ -ˈrændaɪ, ˈməʊdəs ˌɒpəˈrændiː /

noun

1. procedure; method of operating

modus operandi

1. 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.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of modus operandi¹

First recorded in 1645–55; New Latin: literally “mode of working”

Word History and Origins

Origin of modus operandi¹

C17: from Latin

Example Sentences

Aster’s modus operandi, holding strong following his first three features, is to smother the viewer, piling on so many narrative threads that it becomes difficult to claw free for a broader perspective.

From Salon

Authorities then discovered that other monks had similarly transferred money to Ms Golf - which police called her "modus operandi".

From BBC

Headley's modus operandi was always the same - he targeted the homes of elderly or middle aged women living in the same area, which "indicated he had considerable local knowledge," according to one contemporary press report.

From BBC

That sort of triangulation has, to varying degrees, been the Democratic Party’s standard modus operandi for more than 30 years.

From Salon

Their modus operandi — expanding turf, profit and power via fear and bloodshed — will forever peg Latinos as prone to violence in the minds of too many Americans.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• rule of thumb