actual

adj. in philosophy, existing as a real and present fact. The actual is often contrasted with the merely apparent. Something may appear to the senses to be real but may not actually exist. In the intellectual tradition founded by Aristotle, the actual is contrasted to the potential, which is the capacity to change: An entity is actual when form and substance come together to produce it as an end. See also entelechy.

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Psychology term of the day

February 17th 2025

transdermal patch

an adhesive application that is designed to release a drug at a steady rate via absorption through the skin into the bloodstream. Transdermal patches are used, for example, to administer nicotine in progressively smaller doses to people who are trying to give up smoking.