Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition


Ultra-

Ul′tra-

,
Adj.
A prefix from the Latin ultra beyond (see
Ulterior
), having in composition the signification beyond, on the other side, chiefly when joined with words expressing relations of place;
as,
ultra
marine,
ultra
montane,
ultra
mundane,
ultra
tropical, etc
. In other relations it has the sense of excessively, exceedingly, beyond what is common, natural, right, or proper;
as,
ultra
conservative;
ultra
democratic,
ultra
despotic,
ultra
liberal,
ultra
radical, etc
.

Definition 2024


ultra-

ultra-

See also: ultra and ultrà

English

Prefix

ultra-

  1. Greater than normal quantity or importance, as in ultrasecret.
  2. Beyond, on the far side of, as in ultraviolet.
  3. Beyond, outside of, as in ultrasonic.
  4. Excessively, to an extreme, as in ultramicroscopic, ultra-careful.
    • 2013 May 17, George Monbiot, “Money just makes the rich suffer”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 23, page 19:
      In order to grant the rich these pleasures, the social contract is reconfigured. []  The public realm is privatised, the regulations restraining the ultra-wealthy and the companies they control are abandoned, and Edwardian levels of inequality are almost fetishised.

Usage notes

  • Productive in all senses. The hyphen is included when the use is relatively unfamiliar, as in ultra-careful.

Antonyms

Derived terms

<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs14 CategoryTreeLabelCategory' href='/wiki/Category:English_words_prefixed_with_ultra-'>English words prefixed with ultra-</a>

Translations


Danish

Etymology

Borrowing from Latin ultrā (beyond).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ultra-/, [ˈultˢʁ̥ɑˈ-], [ˈultˢʁ̥ɑˌ-]

Prefix

ultra-

  1. ultra- (beyond, on the far side of; beyond, outside of)
  2. ultra- (greater than normal quantity or importance, excessively, to an extreme)

Italian

Etymology

From Latin ultrā (beyond).

Prefix

ultra-

  1. ultra-

Norwegian Bokmål

Prefix

ultra-

  1. ultra- (as for English)

See also

<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs14 CategoryTreeLabelCategory' href='/wiki/Category:Norwegian_Bokm%C3%A5l_words_prefixed_with_ultra-'>Norwegian Bokmål words prefixed with ultra-</a>

Norwegian Nynorsk

Prefix

ultra-

  1. ultra- (as for English)

See also

<a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs14 CategoryTreeLabelCategory' href='/wiki/Category:Norwegian_Nynorsk_words_prefixed_with_ultra-'>Norwegian Nynorsk words prefixed with ultra-</a>