Plural of active; things or people that are active, or in chemistry, compounds that produce a biological effect.
From 'active' (Latin activus) + '-s' (plural). Used in scientific contexts to denote specific substances with biological properties.
In skincare marketing, 'actives' are the ingredients that actually do something—retinol, vitamin C, and hyaluronic acid are famous actives. It's funny that companies had to give a special name to ingredients that *actually work*, implying most ingredients don't!
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