Doc:Glossary/Active

Active

Blender makes a distinction between selected and active. Only one Object or item can be active at any given time, for example to allow visualization of data in buttons. To be active, an object must have been selected while in Object mode. When in Edit mode, only an active object can be edited. If several objects are simultaneously selected while in Object mode, only the last one selected will be active in Edit mode. If no object is selected in Object mode when switching to Edit mode, the object that was active when last in Edit mode will still be active. The active object in a scene when in Edit mode is highlighted.