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ultimate explanation

ultimate explanation In this historical usage, ultimate explanation means the most final level to which an account can reduce what is being explained.

In this historical usage, ultimate explanation means the most final level to which an account can reduce what is being explained. The dispute is about what those last explanatory terms are, such as axioms, self-evident truths, regular sequences, or descriptive and analytical judgments.

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Sources

Drafting source: Baldwin Dictionary of Philosophy and Psychology, 1901. 1901 New York Macmillan original; archive index checked 2026-10-18. “Explanation” (Explanation).
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PsychTerms (psychterms.org), CC BY 4.0, version 1. “ultimate explanation.” Development preview.

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