Etymology

ultraviolet

U1L1T1R1A1V4I1O1L1E1T1

Today it means: Of electromagnetic radiation beyond (higher in frequency than) light visible to the human eye; radiation with wavelengths from 380 to 10 nanometres. Full definition →

English violet ← Middle English violet ← Old French violette
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₂el-
  2. Latinūls
  3. Latinultrā
  4. Englishultra-
  5. Latinviola
  6. Old Frenchviolette
  7. Middle Englishviolet
  8. Englishviolet
  9. English todayultraviolet

From ultra- (“beyond”) + violet (“violet”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.