ultra

U1L1T1R1A1
US, UK/ˈʌltɹə/Northern England/ˈʊltɹə/Scotland, Wales/ˈʌltɾə/Australia, New Zealand/ˈɐltɹə/

adjective

Extreme; far beyond the norm; fanatical; uncompromising.

“an ultra reformer; ultra measures”

CommonScrabble 5

Meanings

adjectiveultra (comparative more ultra, superlative most ultra)

comparative more ultra · superlative most ultra

  1. Extreme; far beyond the norm; fanatical; uncompromising.

    an ultra reformer; ultra measures

nounultra (plural ultras)

plural ultras

  1. A political extremist, in particular

    Five militants were nabbed while four ultras of Harkat-ul-Jehad-e-Islami (HuJI) gave themselves up.

    2005 December 29, “Foreign ultra killed, three injured in J&K”, in The Times of India, retrieved 21 Apr 2009
  2. A political extremist, in particular:
    1. FrancehistoricalAn ultraroyalist.

      "At any rate that is what he explained to me," I said hastily while the lawyer rubbed his long ultra's nose and sighed.

      1974, Lawrence Durrell, Monsieur, Faber & Faber, published 1992, page 37
      1 more example

      Her soirées were among the most agreeable at Paris—she united all the rank and talent to be found in the ultra party, for she professed to be quite a female Mæcenas; […]

      1828, [Edward Bulwer-Lytton], chapter XVI, in Pelham; or, The Adventures of a Gentleman. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 114
  3. ball gamesAn especially devoted football fan, typically organized and participating in choreographies (including pyrotechnics), often of outwardly intimidating demeanour, but distinguished from a violent hooligan (although overlap between both subcultures is possible)

    If a member of an official football club can be said to be a citizen of the football world, an ultra has to be considered as a militant.

    2013, Richard Guilianotti, Football, Violence and Social Identity, Routledge, →ISBN, page 77
    2 more examples

    A similar view is expressed by a Turin supporter in Segre's study, but in this case it is more specifically addressed to how powerful teams, such as Juventus, get preferential treatment in reports on the negative aspects of the ultras world.

    2012, ALINA BERNSTEIN, Neil Blain, Sport, Media, Culture: Global and Local Dimensions, Routledge, →ISBN, page 183

    Although the intention initially was to distribute tickets and arrange travel to away matches, ultras quickly became actively organised and developed an overtly passionate cultural and political identity inside each curva

    2015, Jamie Cleland, A Sociology of Football in a Global Context, Routledge, →ISBN, page 30
  4. athleticsAn ultramarathon.
    1 more example

    I've done more than forty marathons and ultras and have won a handful of small boutiquey races in mountainous, out-of-the-way places: the foothills of the Sierra Nevada; Mount Mitchell, North Carolina; Bozeman, Montana; and, on the third day of a 100-mile stage race, the Mount Everest Challenge Marathon in the Himalayas.

    2008, Rachel Toor, Personal Record: A Love Affair with Running, Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, →ISBN, page 69
  5. climbingAn ultra-prominent peak.

    Blanca Peak is one of just three ultra-prominence peaks, or “ultras,” in the state and the highpoint of the Sierra Blanca Range, a massif that includes ranked 14ers Ellingwood Point, Little Bear Peak, and Mount Lindsey.

    2008, Susan Joy Paul, Climbing Colorado's Mountains, Guilford, CT: Rowman & Littlefield, →ISBN, page 141
  6. capitalizedusuallyCode name used by British codebreakers during World War 2 for decrypted information gained from the enemy.

Synonyms & antonyms

adjective(used of opinions and actions) far beyond the norm

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₂el-
  2. Latinūls
  3. Latinultrā
  4. Englishultra

From Latin ultra.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Italian ultras, ultrà
  • ultrasdevoted sports fan
  • ultràdevoted sports fan
Spanish ultra
  • ultradevoted sports fan

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

ultra. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ultra

MLA

“ultra.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ultra. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ultra,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ultra.

Source: ultra on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.