Affect vs. Effect
To use affect or effect, that is the question. If you are confused on which one to use, you are not alone! Many people get them mixed up, and for good reason! These words sound so similar that people often get them confused! But no need to fear, fellow scholars, I am going to break down this grammatical quandary for you.
The rule of thumb for affect and effect is that affect is generally used as a verb, while effect is used as a noun.
Affect:
When used as a verb, affect means “to influence” or to create a change. A way to remember this is to remember that verbs are action words, and action starts with the letter a, just like affect.
Another defining factor of verbs is that they can change into the past tense. For example, if you see the sentence, The dog affected the boy’s hair, you know that affected is a verb because it has been used in the past tense. Nouns cannot change tenses.
Also! Verbs are interchangeable. You can replace the word affected with other words and the sentence would still make sense.
The dog licked the boy’s hair.
The dog fixed the boy’s hair.
Effect:
When used as a noun, effect means “a result” and indicates that a change has happened. A defining feature of nouns is that they can have an article placed in front of them.
For example, the is an article that can be placed in front of a noun. Take a look at this sentence:
The effect of the dog’s actions made the boy unhappy.
A way to remember that effect is a noun is to think of the article, the, and notice that it ends with an e, which is the first letter of effect.
Exceptions:
- Affect can be used as a noun if you are referring to the psychological state of a person, or a facial expression. Examples: The woman appeared to have a flat affect, or, The news of her dog’s death had a huge affect on her.
- Effect can be used as a verb when it means to bring about a change or to cause a change. Examples: The advocate hoped to effect change in the audience, or, The professor has a positive effect on the student’s learning.
If all else fails, an easy way to remember the difference between affect and effect is to imagine this handsome raven below us.
What does a raven have to do with remembering grammar, you may ask? Typically, absolutely nothing. However, in this case, the letters in raven contain the letters A–V and E–N, which can be used to remember that Affect is a Verb and Effect is a Noun.
Think you are the master of affect and effect? Take this quiz and see if you understand the difference between the two! http://www.grammarbook.com/grammar_quiz/effect_vs_affect_1.asp
This quiz is a great resource because it provides an explanation for each of the questions!
Have fun!
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