Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adv. In or of the month before the present one: on the 15th ultimo.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- In the month which preceded the present; in the last month, as distinguished from the current or present month and all others. It is usually abbreviated ult.: as, on the 12th ult.—that is, on the 12th day ‘in the last month,’ ultimo being a Latin adjective agreeing with mense, month, understood. Compare
instant , adjective, 1, and proximo.
Wiktionary
- adj. obsolete On the last day (of a specified month).
- adv. Of last month.
- n. obsolete, rare = ultimum
GNU Webster's 1913
- In the month immediately preceding the present; ; -- usually abbreviated to ult. Cf. proximo.
WordNet 3.0
- adj. in or of the month preceding the present one
Etymologies
- First attested in 1622; from either the Italian ultimo, or the Portuguese ultimo, or the Spanish ultimo; compare ultime. (Wiktionary)
- Latin ultimō (mēnse), in the last (month), ablative of ultimus, last; see ultimate. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Besides the loss which he sustained on the night of the 23d ultimo, which is estimated at 400, he cannot have suffered less between that period and the morning of the 18th instant than 3000; having, within that time, been repulsed in two general attempts to drive us from our position, and there having been continual cannonading and skirmishing during the whole of it.”
The Medallic History of the United States of America 1776-1876
“A pair of diverticula arise from the fifth branchial pouch and form what are termed the ultimo-branchial bodies (Fig. 1175): these fuse with the thyroid gland, but probably contribute no true thyroid tissue.”
“I have to thank you for your favor of the 31st ultimo, which is just now received.”
Memoir, Correspondence, And Miscellanies, From The Papers Of Thomas Jefferson, Volume 4
“MY DEAR SIR, -- I have to thank you for your favor of the 31st ultimo, which is just now received.”
“The rest of the class looked at me like I was crazy, because 'ultimo' in Spanish means only 'last' or 'most recent' and not 'definitive'.”
“May 3rd, 2010 at 8: 54 pm federico dio un concierto aqui en chicago en el ultimo verano a la festival Lollapalooza.”
Federico Aubele – La Esquina « Esl Videos « Videos « Literacy News
“All the ultimate hum about Virna Lisi only during TrendHeadlines.com. ultimo spettacolo: A domanda rispondo.”
“La gente que se siente afectada por no tener el ultimo chichito tecnologico o pagarlo un poco más, solo piensan en su hedonismo y no en el país, que sí necesita afianzar su industria, como la supo tener y que necesita dar trabajo a los argentinos, en lugar de darle trabajo a los obreros de otras latitudes; es muy mezquina la actitud de los detractores a esta idea.”
Global Voices in English » Argentina: Proposal to Increase Taxes on Some Technology Products
“Lo ultimo que dijeron fue que harian lo posible para que terminara viejo la carrera osea que no me dejarian terminar jamas.”
“Eso de que el ultimo español abandonó la isla en el 98 es relativo.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘ultimo’.
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Even More 250 Spelling Words
Good for intermediate and advanced spellers and anybody who wants to use words with precision
maculature, mochila, twankay, hyson, isocryme, glasnost, ozaena, locavore, frazil, sclaff, chautauqua, bergamot and 238 more...
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phrontistery-u
from phrontistery.info
uakari, uberous, uberty, ubication, ubiety, ubique, ubiquitarianism, ubity, ucalegon, udal, udometer, ufology and 175 more...
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Originventory
Beformitables; previousness, past-referents, and origins.
erstwhile, formication, quondam, atavistic, umquhile, yestreen, hesternal, hesternopothia, pridian, ere, retrophilia, ante mortem and 72 more...
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Papageno's Words, Pt. I
hobbledehoy, absquatulate, chthonic, prolix, ululate, internecine, verisimilitude, animadversion, concupiscence, vertiginous, cucullate, lucubrate and 1554 more...
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kawy's list
subtrist, tricoteuse, undisonant, apricity, apricity, nudiustertian, snaste, chrestomath, chrestomath, velleity, zugzwang, muntin and 106 more...
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figerrific's Words
guapa, villainous, pencel, flummery, reticent, flibbertigibbet, urbane, irenic, rue, forehanded, cavort, specious and 43 more...
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Suburbs of Sydney
bella vista, revesby, woollahra, asquith, balgowlah, barra brui, bellevue hill, berrilee, berowra, blair athol, bonnyrigg, bringelly and 66 more...
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Time
Tweets
Looking for tweets for ultimo.
whichbe Ultimo, together with instant and proximo, is an example of an outdated commercial language. Few businessmen would today begin a letter "With reference to yours of the 14th ultimo", or "yours of the 23rd instant", or "Please attend this office for interview on the 11th proximo", but it was once standard and taught in the best books. All three were commonly abbreviated, to ult, inst and prox respectively.
Ultimo and proximo are both Latin, shortened forms of ultimo mense, in the previous month, and proximo mense, in the next month. Many reference works say inst is from Latin instante mense, in the current month. But the Oxford English Dictionary points out that it has always been expanded to the English word instant, in the specialised meaning of current.
By 1922, such terms were being satirised in Punch:
Bear up, brave clerklets, though the lights of learning
Your quaint commercial English sadly shocks,
And even your bosses are agreed in spurning
Your "inst", and "ult", and "prox".
I like the pleasant jargon: I should miss it
If firms no more ("per pro" before their name)
Should "thank me for past favours and solicit
Continuance of the same".
(from World Wide Words) May 20, 2008