After too\/to and your\/you\u2019re, effect and affect are probably one of the most frequently misunderstood word pairs in common English, especially for all those out there studying for the TOEFL. In spite of this, the\u00a0 difference between them is actually pretty simple: generally speaking, effect is a noun, and affect is a verb.<\/p>\n
If you affect<\/b> something, you influence it. It usually has a neutral connotation, although it can be used negatively.<\/p>\n
Thousands of people are affected<\/b> by tornadoes each spring.
\nThe new law will affect<\/b> hundreds of business owners.<\/p>\n
We use the noun effect<\/b> to talk about one thing changing or acting on another.<\/p>\n
The effect<\/b> of bad press on tourism to a given location can be devastating.
\nThe Doppler effect<\/b> describes how movement can make sounds seem higher or lower depending\u00a0on where they are relative to an observer.<\/p>\n
The adjective form, effective, should be familiar to you; synonyms for it include successful and\u00a0 powerful.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s the good news: these words are common, and their definitions aren\u2019t particularly difficult. But here\u2019s the less good news: Affect can also be a noun, and effect can also be a verb. These usages are far less common than the ones mentioned above, so if you want to stop here, you\u2019ll still be fine 90% of the time. But if you\u2019re an overachiever, read on.<\/p>\n
In psychology, affect<\/b> refers to a psychological or emotional state. You may have heard its adjectival counterpart, affective<\/b>, which simply means \u201cemotional.\u201d<\/p>\n
The shopkeeper\u2019s brooding affect<\/b> contradicted her otherwise polite greeting.
\nSam, who preferred dry, objective writing, was repulsed by the author\u2019s affective<\/b> prose.<\/p>\n
Effect<\/b> as a verb means \u201cto cause.\u201d Fortunately for us, this is probably the least common meaning in this post, used almost exclusively in one particular environment: to effect<\/b> a change.<\/p>\n
Harsh criticism from both parties effected<\/b> an immediate and noticeable change in the\u00a0representative\u2019s policies.<\/p>\n
The basic rule of thumb: if you\u2019re not effecting<\/b> a change, it\u2019s better to avoid the verb \u201ceffect.\u201d And really, if you\u2019re shooting for the clearest, least obscure prose you can create, you should avoid using effect<\/b> as a verb altogether. Just be prepared to see it in older texts.<\/p>\n
There is one more less common usage of effect<\/b>, once again as a noun: it can be used to refer to your personal possessions.<\/p>\n
When she departed for Europe, she had sold so many of her possessions that all her remaining\u00a0personal effects<\/b> fit into a small trunk.<\/p>\n
To sum up:<\/p>\n
1. Affect <\/b>is usually a verb meaning to influence or cause a change in something else.<\/p>\n
2.\u00a0Effect <\/b>is usually a noun that refers to a change.<\/p>\n
3. Affect <\/b>is also a noun that means the same thing as emotion or demeanor.<\/p>\n