English
ultra
Ultra comes from Latin ultrā ‘beyond’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘to grow, nourish’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-1‘to grow, nourish’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂ol-2reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEūls1‘beyond’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEultrā1‘beyond’
- Englishearliest quotation 1828ultra1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English ultra
- 2 Wiktionary, Latin uls
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1828, Edward Bulwer-Lytton, The Adventures of a Gentleman. […]: “Her soirées were among the most agreeable at Paris—she…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-Wiktionary, English ultra‘to grow, nourish’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂ol-Wiktionary, Latin ulsreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEūlsWiktionary, English ultra‘beyond’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEultrāWiktionary, English ultra‘beyond’
- Englishearliest quotation 1828ultraWiktionary, English ultra. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1828, Edward Bulwer-Lytton, The Adventures of a Gentleman. […]: “Her soirées were among the most agreeable at Paris—she…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘to grow, nourish’
as, all, old, else, el, element, alien, adult, ultimate, elder, ellen, alternate, alumni, qualification, ou, alter, altitude, alpine, adolescent, altar, abolish, alias, alt, alum, alto, alibi, retaliate, alimony, alp, proletariat, parallax, coalesce, auld, foetal, altruism, ulterior, aad, eld, exalt, althea, 65 more
through Latin ultrā ‘beyond’
Today it means
adj Extreme; far beyond the norm; fanatical; uncompromising.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “ultra”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin uls. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- / ultra