affect

¹

[ verb uh-fekt; noun af-ekt ]

verb (used with object)

1. to act on; produce an effect or change in:

   Cold weather affected the crops.

   Synonyms: alter, modify, sway, influence

2. to impress the mind or move the feelings of:

   The music affected him deeply.

   Synonyms: stir, touch

3. (of pain, disease, etc.) to attack or lay hold of.

noun

1. Psychology. feeling or emotion.
2. Psychiatry. an expressed or observed emotional response:

   Restricted, flat, or blunted affect may be a symptom of mental illness, especially schizophrenia.

3. Obsolete. affection; passion; sensation; inclination; inward disposition or feeling.

affect

²

[ uh-fekt ]

verb (used with object)

1. to give the appearance of; pretend or feign:

   to affect knowledge of the situation.

2. to assume artificially, pretentiously, or for effect:

   to affect a Southern accent.

3. to use, wear, or adopt by preference; choose; prefer:

   the peculiar costume he affected.

4. to assume the character or attitude of:

   to affect the freethinker.

5. (of things) to tend toward habitually or naturally:

   a substance that affects colloidal form.

6. (of animals and plants) to occupy or inhabit; live in or on:

   Lions affect Africa. Moss affects the northern slopes.

7. Archaic.
   1. to have affection for; fancy.
   2. to aim at; aspire to.

verb (used without object)

1. Obsolete. to incline, tend, or favor (usually followed by to ):

   He affects to the old ways.

affect

¹

verb

1. to act upon or influence, esp in an adverse way

   damp affected the sparking plugs

2. to move or disturb emotionally or mentally

   her death affected him greatly

3. (of pain, disease, etc) to attack

noun

1. psychol the emotion associated with an idea or set of ideas See also affection

affect

²

/ əˈfɛkt /

verb

1. to put on an appearance or show of; make a pretence of

   to affect ignorance

2. to imitate or assume, esp pretentiously

   to affect an accent

3. to have or use by preference

   she always affects funereal clothing

4. to adopt the character, manner, etc, of

   he was always affecting the politician

5. (of plants or animals) to live or grow in

   penguins affect an arctic climate

6. to incline naturally or habitually towards

   falling drops of liquid affect roundness

Confusables Note

Affect1 and effect, each both noun and verb, share the sense of “influence,” and because of their similarity in pronunciation are sometimes confused in writing. As a verb affect1 means “to act on” or “to move” ( His words affected the crowd so deeply that many wept ); affect2 means “to pretend” or “to assume” ( new students affecting a nonchalance they didn't feel ). The verb effect means “to bring about, accomplish”: Her administration effected radical changes. The noun effect means “result, consequence”: the serious effects of the oil spill. The noun affect1 pronounced with the stress on the first syllable, is a technical term in psychology and psychiatry. Affect2 is not used as a noun.

Other Words From

• af·fecta·ble adjective
• af·fecta·bili·ty noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of affect¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin affectus “acted upon, subjected to; mental or emotional state” (past participle and action noun of afficere ), equivalent to af- “toward” + fec- (combining form of facere “to make, do”) + -tus action noun suffix or -tus past participle suffix; af-

Origin of affect²

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Middle French affecter, from Latin affectāre “to strive after, feign” (frequentative of afficere “to do to”), equivalent to af- af- + fec- ( affect ¹ ) + -tāre frequentative suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of affect¹

C17: from Latin affectus, past participle of afficere to act upon, from ad- to + facere to do

Origin of affect²

C15: from Latin affectāre to strive after, pretend to have; related to afficere to affect ¹

Synonym Study

See pretend.

Example Sentences

In a statement, McDonald's said it had now found an alternative supplier and has started selling Quarter Pounders with onions again at the affected restaurants.

From BBC

After El Paso I began investigating how a border crisis, rising temperatures, disasters and the swirling political reactions to them were affecting the agendas and vigilante campaigns of the far right.

From Salon

But concerns remain that a shift in policies could affect inflation rates.

From Salon

So, will this affect people with pension savings?

From BBC

BBC Action Line: If you have been affected by issues in this story, find out what support is available here.

From BBC

Related Words

• alter
• change
• disturb
• influence
• interest
• involve
• touch
• upset

Affect Vs. Effect

What's the difference between affect and effect?

Affect is most commonly used as a verb meaning to act on or produce a change in someone or something. Effect is most commonly used as a noun meaning a result or consequence.

Remembering the difference between the words can be especially hard because these senses of the words have just about the same pronunciation. Complicating things further is the fact that affect can also be used as a noun (referring to a state of emotion, as in He had a sad affect) and effect can also be used as a verb (meaning to make happen, as in We can only effect change by taking action). However, these senses of the words are much less commonly used.

You can remember that affect is most commonly used as a verb because it begins with a, for action.

You can also remember how affect and effect are most commonly used by using the acronym RAVEN:

R = Remember
A = Affect is a
V = Verb
E = Effect is a
N = Noun

Here’s an example of affect and effect used correctly in the same sentence.

Example: It’s unclear what immediate effects the new law will have or how it will affect future generations.

Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between affect and effect.

Quiz yourself on affect vs. effect!

Should affect or effect be used in the following sentence?

The campaign is hoping that the ads have a big _____ on voter turnout.