Learning French: what does grosso modo mean and when should it be used?

Grosso modo is a phrase that appears in several European languages to describe getting straight to the point of an idea or message, without going into great detail. 

We look at ways to use this medieval Latin term in modern everyday French. 

Plus, discover how a social media account (of the same name) promotes poetic creativity while exploring cities in France.

What does grosso modo mean?

Grosso modo is used to indicate that a story or discussion is being condensed or summarised. 

It is similar to how English-speakers might use: by and large. 

Further synonyms include: 

• En gros - Basically

• Bref - In summary

• Globalement - Roughly

• Sans entrer dans le détail - Without getting into the nitty gritty 

• Quasiment/quasi’ - Approximately 

• D'une manière générale - Broadly speaking

• A vue de nez - The bottom line

Read also: Au pif: How many of these French estimation phrases do you know?

What are the origins of grosso modo?

This expression was first used in the 14th Century and comes from medieval Latin, combining grossus (large) and modus (manner). 

Grosso modo could therefore be translated as, de manière grossière, referring to the idea of summarising the key points of a story, without going into precise detail.

You might see this term connected with a hyphen (grosso-modo) in older texts, however the punctuation mark disappeared in 1932. The Larousse dictionary states that today, it should be written as two separate words.

Read also: Learning French: the origins and meaning of être Gros-Jean comme devant

When do you say grosso modo?

You can say this in formal contexts to show you are getting straight to the point:

• Je viens de regarder les chiffres et, grosso modo, nous ne pouvons pas nous permettre d'investir dans ce projet pour le moment. - I just looked at the figures and, the bottom line is, we cannot afford to invest in this project at the moment.

It can also be said in everyday conversation before you summarise an idea, message or story:

• Grosso modo, chaque fois que je prends cette ligne de métro, elle est blindée. - Broadly speaking, every time I take this metro line, it is packed.

To whom do you say grosso modo?

It is neutral language and can be used in a range of contexts, from formal discussion to casual conversation.

This term is mainly reserved for spoken language but can also be written down. 

Grosso Modo on social media

You might recognise grosso modo from a 'punny' and poetic social media account of the same name.

French author and content creator, Paul Joubert, films moments from his everyday strolls around France (mainly Paris) through a creative lens, finding magic in the mundane.

He uses the tagline: Les balades grosso modo - Bienvenue dans les balades de mon imagination (Grosso modo walks - Welcome to the walks of my imagination).