July 23, 2013
ultima (noun)
\UL-tuh-muh\ Hear it!
What does it mean?
: the last syllable of a word
How do you use it?
The words "water," "after," and "computer" share the same ultima.
Are you a word wiz?

Which of the following words has the same ultima as "summer"?

Words with the same or rhyming ultimas can be important in a rhyming poem's lines, as any poet whose poems rhyme will tell you. The syllable just before the last syllable of a word can be just as important. That syllable is called the "penultima," or, more commonly, the "penult." Both "ultima" and "penult" come from Latin. "Ultima" means "last," and the "pen" of "penult" and "penultimate" comes from Latin "paene," meaning "almost."
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