ulterior meaning and definition

ULTERIOR adjective

Definition of ulterior (adjective)

1. lying beyond what is openly revealed or avowed (especially being kept in the background or deliberately concealed)
   • "subterranean motives for murder"; "looked too closely for an ulterior purpose in all knowledge"- Bertrand Russell
   • synonyms: subterranean, subterraneous
2. beyond or outside an area of immediate interest; remote
   • "a suggestion ulterior to the present discussion"; "without...any purpose, immediate or ulterior"- G.B.Shaw
3. coming at a subsequent time or stage
   • "without ulterior argument"; "the mood posterior to"
   • synonyms: later, posterior