modus operandi
14
7.5
- noun
- /ˈmoʊdəs ˌɑːpəˈrændi/
- Literature
- If you ask me, the modus operandi of this vigilante will escalate until our peaceful hamlet is washed of these vicious criminals.
- a new modus operandi
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Watch on YouTubeAnd this is the the particular modus operandi of yourself, Andrew Doyle specifically, and Zooby's very famous video where he did the deadlift record.
- And this is the the particular modus operandi of yourself, Andrew Doyle specifically, and Zooby's very famous video where he did the deadlift record.
- And this is the the particular modus operandi of yourself, Andrew Doyle specifically, and Zubie's very famous video where he did the deadlift record.
- And the best the ego can do is attain some kind of, you know, at the time modus operandi and, and, and working with them.
Examples
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As with previous attacks, the modus operandi of the gang was to strike two targets almost simultaneously.
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Strategies for risk management will affect the modus operandi of drug syndicates, including their size, structure, composition, and organization.
Academic text (2007) -
Give them the modus operandi.
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A wave has a very strong impact on the modus operandi of a society.
Academic text (2017) -
Lifelong learning is the modus operandi of information age community colleges.
Academic text (1997) -
Alan Riding describes the typical modus operandi of the system.
Academic text (1993) -
That's the modus operandi of this crime.
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One result was that the West's modus operandi for dealing with Russia became a holding operation.
Academic text (1993) -
Thus, disengagement and noninvolvement, rather than concern and active participation, become the modus operandi of our youth.
Academic text (1990) -
The detective noticed that the modus operandi of the thief was always the same: breaking in through the back door.
Synonyms
∞
3.7
A plan to reach a goal, often used in business or games
∞
2.2
A planned way of doing something, often in clear steps
516
3.0
A planned action to reach a goal
354
1.0
A regular way of doing things
233
2.8
A way of doing or experiencing something
16
7.7
A particular way a person or group does things
Surface Forms
Morphology
modus + operandi
The phrase is a literal Latin compound: 'modus' = method/way and 'operandi' = of operating, so the overall meaning 'method of operating' is directly compositional from its parts. Although it is a Latin loanword used as a fixed phrase in English, the semantic relation matches common cross-linguistic patterns (method/mode + of operating), making it immediately inferable by a learner who knows both constituents.
Etymology
Modus operandi comes from Latin words: modus meaning 'method' and operandi meaning 'of operating'. Imagine a thief who always uses the same plan — that usual way is the thief's modus operandi, so the phrase now means a person's regular way of doing things.