*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of ultra

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Latin ūls Proto-Indo-European *-teros? Latin -ter Old Latin -ād Latin -ā Latin ultrābor. English ultra From Latin ultra.

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
noun

A political extremist, in particular · An ultraleftist. · An ultranationalist. · An ultraroyalist.

adj

Extreme; far beyond the norm; fanatical; uncompromising.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Latin ūls Proto-Indo-European *-teros? Latin -ter Old Latin -ād Latin -ā Latin ultrābor. English ultra From Latin ultra.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

This page abbreviates 4 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "etymon",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "la:ultrā<id:beyond>",
        "id": "extreme",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *h₂el-\nLatin ūls\nProto-Indo-European *-teros?\nLatin -ter\nOld Latin -ād\nLatin -ā\nLatin ultrābor.\nEnglish ultra\n[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"beyond\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"beyond\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"other\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*h₂el-\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"ūls\", \"lang\" : \"la\" }, { \"id\" : \"adverb suffix\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"is_uncertain\" : true, \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*-teros\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"-ter\", \"lang\" : \"la\" }, { \"id\" : \"adverbial\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"ablative\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang_name\" : \"Old Latin\", \"term\" : \"-ād\", \"lang\" : \"itc-ola\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"-ā\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"ultrā\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"ultra\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"extreme\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"ultra\" id=\"English:_extreme\">"
    },
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      "name": "root",
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      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "uder",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "ultra"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin ultra"
    },
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      "name": "etymon",
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        "3": "la:ultrā<id:beyond>",
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      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *h₂el-\nLatin ūls\nProto-Indo-European *-teros?\nLatin -ter\nOld Latin -ād\nLatin -ā\nLatin ultrābor.\nEnglish ultra"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*h₂el-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂el-#Proto-Indo-European:_other"
    ],
    [
      "ūls",
      "uls#Latin:_beyond"
    ],
    [
      "*-teros",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-teros"
    ],
    [
      "-ter",
      "-ter#Latin:_adverb_suffix"
    ],
    [
      "-ād",
      "-ad#Latin:_ablative"
    ],
    [
      "-ā",
      "-a#Latin:_adverbial"
    ],
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      "ultrā",
      "ultra#Latin:_beyond"
    ],
    [
      "ultra",
      "ultra#Latin"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A political extremist, in particular",
        "An ultraleftist.",
        "An ultranationalist.",
        "An ultraroyalist."
      ],
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        "historical"
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 294720
    },
    {
      "pos": "adj",
      "glosses": [
        "Extreme; far beyond the norm; fanatical; uncompromising."
      ],
      "tags": [],
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 294719
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 4,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for ultra →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-dWx0cmE