Meanings
- Greater than normal quantity or importance, as in ultrasecret.
- Beyond, on the far side of, as in ultraviolet.
Synonyms: trans-
- Beyond, outside of, as in ultraterrestrial.
- Excessively, to an extreme, as in ultramicroscopic.
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.
2013 May 17, George Monbiot, “Money just makes the rich suffer”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 23, page 19 - augmentativeIntensely, extremely, or exceptional
Synonyms & antonyms
prefixBeyond, on the far side of, as in ultraviolet.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*h₂el-
- Latinūls
- Latinultrā
- Englishultra-
Borrowed from Latin ultrā (“beyond”).
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian свръх, крайно
- свръх (svrăh)greater than normal quantity or importance
- крайно (krajno)beyond, on the far side of
- извънредно (izvănredno)beyond, outside of
Czech ultra-
- ultra-beyond, on the far side of
Finnish huippu-, erikois-
- huippu-greater than normal quantity or importance
- erikois-greater than normal quantity or importance
- ultra-greater than normal quantity or importance
- yli-beyond, on the far side of
- ultra-beyond, on the far side of
- yli-beyond, outside of
- ultra-beyond, outside of
- yli-excessively, to an extreme
- ultra-excessively, to an extreme
French ultra-
- ultra-excessively, to an extreme
Greek υπερ-
- υπερ- (yper-)greater than normal quantity or importance
Japanese 超, 超
- 超 (chō)greater than normal quantity or importance
- 超 (chō)beyond, on the far side of
- 超 (chō)beyond, outside of
- 超 (chō)excessively, to an extreme
Malay ultra-
- ultra-greater than normal quantity or importance
Polish ponad-, ponad-
- ponad-greater than normal quantity or importance
- ponad-beyond, on the far side of
- ponad-beyond, outside of
- ultra-excessively, to an extreme
Russian сверх-, ультра-
- сверх- (sverx-)greater than normal quantity or importance
- ультра- (ulʹtra-)beyond, on the far side of
- сверх- (sverx-)beyond, outside of
- ультра- (ulʹtra-)excessively, to an extreme
- сверх- (sverx-)excessively, to an extreme
Scottish Gaelic os-, os-
- os-greater than normal quantity or importance
- os-beyond, on the far side of
- os-beyond, outside of
- os-excessively, to an extreme
Spanish ultra-, ultra-
- ultra-greater than normal quantity or importance
- ultra-beyond, on the far side of
- ultra-beyond, outside of
- ultra-excessively, to an extreme
Cite this entry
ultra-. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ultra-
“ultra-.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ultra-. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ultra-,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ultra-.
Source: ultra- on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.