Penultimate Meaning
/pɪˈnʌltɪmət/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjNext to last, second to last; immediately preceding the end of a sequence, list, etc.
adjOf or pertaining to a penult.
Sentence Examples
First, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth... penultimate, last.
Johnny, please read the penultimate paragraph.
This is the penultimate version of the paper.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ chapter of the book came just before the final one, revealing the climax.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ chapter of the novel revealed the identity of the killer just before the final resolution.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree Latin paene Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Proto-Italic *-tm̥mos Proto-Italic *oltm̥mos Latin ultimus Latin paenultimus Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂tos Proto-Italic *-ātos Latin -ātuslbor. English -ate English penultimate From Latin paenultimus (“penultimate”) + -ate (adjective-forming suffix), from paene (“almost”) + ultimus (“last”). Equivalent to pene- + ultimate. Compare French pénultième.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"[…] they [the sounds of an echo] next strike the ultimate secondary object, then the penultimate and antepenultimate; […]"
— 1677, Robert Plot, “Of the Heavens and Air”, in The natural history of Oxford-shire: Being an Essay Toward the Natural History of England, page 15:
"But it should frequently happen that offspring should resemble its penultimate rather than its latest phase, and should thus be more like a grand-parent than a parent."
— 1878, Samuel Butler, chapter 10, in Life and Habit:
"“Your clothes don't weigh more'n seven pounds. And seven from—hum—say one hundred an' twenty-three—one hundred an' sixteen is your stripped weight.”
But at the penultimate word, Mary cried out with sharp reproof:
“Why, Billy Roberts, people don't talk about such things.”"
— 1913, Jack London, chapter 3, in The Valley of the Moon:
"Ultimately, I reach the most penultimate existential questions: “What is the meaning of this? Is there any?”"
— 2022 February 10, Ethan Marshall, “Is written media dead?”, in The Glasgow Guardian:
"Our Lutheran concern for the ultimates (the Gospel) has allowed us to neglect some of the penultimates (bodily healing), failing to stress the total implications of that ultimate Gospel."
— 1962, Minutes of the Adjourned Meeting of 22nd Biennial Convention of the United Lutheran Church in America, XXII.iv:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ chapter of the book came just before the final one, revealing the climax.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ chapter of the novel revealed the identity of the killer just before the final resolution.