There are some word pairs that are so confusing that almost everyone gets them wrong. One of those word pairs is effect and affect. In fact, these are some of the most commonly searched words on merriam-webster.com because so many people are befuddled by their similar pronunciations, spellings, and definitions.
You’re probably thinking, “True… I have no idea when to use one or the other.” Or, maybe you roll your eyes and gnash your teeth when you see someone using “effect” and “affect” incorrectly. Regardless, most everyone can connect to this topic in some way or another.
To start, “effect” has various meanings, but its most common definition is “something that inevitably follows a [cause]” (Merriam-Webster). Some synonyms are “impact,” “reaction,” “outcome,” and “consequence.” As you may have noticed, each of these synonyms are nouns–and so is “effect” when it’s used in this manner.
On the other hand, according to Merriam-Webster, “affect” means “to produce an effect upon.” …Seems pretty similar to “effect,” right? It even has “effect” in the definition! The crucial difference here is that “affect” is a verb, which involves action. Synonyms include “influence,” “transform,” and “change,” which are also verbs.
Here are some example sentences to get you thinking critically about what you just learned:
- “The salary increases had a positive effect on employee engagement.” In this case, “effect” is the appropriate word. One way to check is to replace “effect” with one of its synonyms. For instance, the sentence would still make sense if it said: “The salary increase had a positive impact on employee engagement.”
- “My teacher’s grading style affects the way I write my papers.” Here, “affect” is correct. For the sentence to be meaningful, a verb is required. And, words like “influences” or “changes” could replace “affects,” whereas words like “reaction” or “consequence” would completely mangle the sentence.
- “My personality effects the team dynamic.” …That doesn’t look right, does it? You need a verb instead of a noun.
- “The affect was an increase in employee turnover.” That’s not right either. This time, you need a noun, not a verb.
As if things aren’t confusing enough already, “affect” has a couple of other definitions. First, as a noun, it can be used in the context of psychology to refer to feeling or emotion. It’s almost never used as a noun in any other setting. In many ways, this word has become obsolete.
Second, “affect” can mean “to cause strong emotions in” or “to put on a pretense of” (Merriam-Webster.) With this definition, “affect” is being used as a verb, but it has more of an emotional connotation. For instance, you could say, “She affected an indifferent demeanor, but I knew she was deeply hurt by the rejection.” Or, “I was strongly affected by the speaker’s heartfelt speech.”
To make things even more complicated, “effect” can also be used as a verb meaning “to cause to come into being” or “to put into operation.” So, you might say, “We are going to effect a change.” Or, “She had little power to effect a new budget.”
If this is still making your head spin, try to replace “effect” with one of its synonyms, such as “enact,” “implement,” “cause,” or “achieve.” For instance, “We are going to implement a change” makes perfect sense. However, a synonym of the noun “effect” would transform the sentence to this: “We are going to reaction a change.” That certainly doesn’t sound right!
Wow! Is it any wonder that people get mixed up over “effect” versus “affect”? There is so much to keep straight when it comes to this tricky word pair! To make it easy on yourself, don’t worry too much about memorizing “effect” as a verb and “affect” in relation to emotion. Sometimes, using such language can make you sound a bit haughty and pretentious. So, unless you’re positive you’re using the words correctly and that tone is ideal for the setting and situation, you can feel free to avoid those usages.
Here’s what you absolutely need to remember: Most of the time, when you use the word “effect,” you’re using it as a noun meaning “impact” or “outcome.” And, when you use the word “affect,” you’re usually using it as a verb meaning “influence” or “cause.” It’s most important to master these usages because they’re super common–and you don’t want to make your peers, boss, or interviewer groan over your seemingly lacking English skills.
Still kind of fuzzy? Check out this link to see if it clears things up for you.
writewell-editing.com 