# ultimate

Pronunciation: US say "UL-tuh-mit" /ˈʌltəmət/; UK say "UL-ti-mit" /ˈʌltɪmət/

## Adjective

1. Being the greatest possible in degree or extent; maximum.
   - Simple: As great or extreme as something can possibly be.
   - _The race car represents the ultimate in automotive engineering._
   - _For many chefs, this knife is the ultimate kitchen tool._
2. Final; the last in a series.
   - Simple: Coming last in a series.
   - _The committee scheduled the project's ultimate review for December._
   - _We reached the ultimate stop on the bus route._
3. Bound to happen at some point in time; eventual.
   - Simple: Sure to happen at some later time.
   - _Analysts predicted the ultimate collapse of the housing market._
   - _Their ultimate victory came only after a decade of effort._
5. Situated at the greatest distance or at the outermost extreme.
   - Simple: Being the farthest away or the most extreme.
   - _The probe reached the ultimate boundary of the solar system._
   - _Sailors once feared the ultimate limits of the uncharted ocean._
6. Last in a chain of progression or consequences; the final result toward which all that precedes tends.
   - Simple: Being the final result that everything before it leads to.
   - _The treaty marked the ultimate result of long diplomatic effort._
   - _Extinction was the ultimate consequence of the changing climate._
9. Incapable of further analysis, division, or separation; constituent; elemental.
   - Simple: So basic that it cannot be broken down any further.
   - _Physicists sought the ultimate particles from which everything is made._
   - _The theory posits ultimate constituents that cannot be subdivided._
10. Coming at the very end of a word or of some other unit of speech.
   - Simple: Being the last sound or syllable in a word.
   - _Linguists noted that the accent shifts to the ultimate syllable._
   - _The ultimate consonant of the phrase is barely pronounced._

## Noun

4. The greatest extremity or the highest possible degree of something.
   - Simple: The greatest amount or highest point that is possible.
   - _For pure comfort, this mattress is the ultimate._
   - _When it comes to raw speed, that engine is the ultimate._
7. The point at which something finally ends or reaches its farthest extent.
   - Simple: The very last point or the end of something.
   - _In his philosophy, perfect knowledge was the ultimate toward which all study moved._
   - _The retirement party marked the ultimate of her long career._
8. The element of a group that is more fundamental than all the others.
   - Simple: The most basic or important thing in a group of things.
   - _Philosophers debated whether matter or mind was the ultimate of reality._
   - _For her, freedom remained the ultimate of all political principles._
11. Short form of ultimate frisbee or ultimate disc. — Ellipsis of ultimate frisbee or ultimate disc.
   - Simple: Short form of ultimate frisbee or ultimate disc. A team sport played with a flying disc.
   - _After work, they meet up to play ultimate on the field._
   - _The club hosts ultimate tournaments throughout the summer._

## Verb

12. To bring to completion; to finish or complete something. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: To bring something to a finish.
   - _The craftsmen sought to ultimate the carving before the festival._
   - _He resolved to ultimate his treatise within the year._

## Origin

From Medieval Latin ultimātus ("furthest, last"), the perfect passive participle of ultimō ("to come to an end"), from ultimus ("last, final") plus a verb-forming suffix; compare ultra-. In the sense of the sport, it was renamed to avoid using the Frisbee trademark.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/ultimate (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).