Page "Fatality (Mortal Kombat)" Paragraph 3

Unlike special moves, a Fatality may require certain distances and quick button sequences in order to achieve the desired result.

Usually, every character has their own special Fatality that must be performed at a certain distance from the opponent, the three distances being: close ( means that the finishing move won't work unless the player is right next to the opponent ), sweep ( means that the player should stand a step or two away from the opponent, but still within the distance that a sweeping low kick should hit ) and far ( means at least one jump's length away from the opponent ).