What is "actual cautery"

Actual \Ac"tu*al\ (#; 135), a. [OE. actuel, F. actuel, L. actualis, fr. agere to do, act.]

1. Involving or comprising action; active. [Obs.]

   Her walking and other actual performances.
   --Shak.

   Let your holy and pious intention be actual; that is . . . by a special prayer or action, . . . given to God.
   --Jer. Taylor.

2. Existing in act or reality; really acted or acting; in fact; real; -- opposed to potential, possible, virtual, speculative, conceivable, theoretical, or nominal; as, the actual cost of goods; the actual case under discussion.

3. In action at the time being; now exiting; present; as the actual situation of the country.

   Actual cautery. See under Cautery.

   Actual sin (Theol.), that kind of sin which is done by ourselves in contradistinction to ``original sin.''

   Syn: Real; genuine; positive; certain. See Real.

Cautery \Cau"ter*y\, n.; pl. Cauteries. [L. cauterium, Gr. ?. See Cauter.]

1. (Med.) A burning or searing, as of morbid flesh, with a hot iron, or by application of a caustic that will burn, corrode, or destroy animal tissue.

2. The iron of other agent in cauterizing.

   Actual cautery, a substance or agent (as a hot iron) which cauterizes or sears by actual heat; or the burning so effected.

   Potential cautery, a substance which cauterizes by chemical action; as, lunar caustic; also, the cauterizing produced by such substance.