Proximate and ultimate causation

Proximate and ultimate causation are two different ways of understanding why things happen in the world. Proximate causation explains the immediate cause - or the “how” - of something happening, while ultimate causation explains the underlying, deeper reason - or the “why” - of something happening.

For example, imagine a person stumbles and falls. The proximate cause is that they tripped, while the ultimate cause could be that they weren't paying attention while they were walking. So, the proximate cause is their trip, and the ultimate cause is their lack of attention.