Monday Grammar Minute: Affect vs. Effect

Welcome back to Monday Grammar Minute, where we take a perfectly good Monday and make it slightly more complicated by discussing grammar.

Today, we’re tackling two little words that have been confusing writers for approximately forever: affect and effect.

They sound almost identical. They look suspiciously similar. And they seem determined to make us question everything we learned in English class. But there’s a pretty simple way to remember them.

Affect is usually a verb.

It means to influence or change something.

For example: The lack of sleep affected my mood.

Or: The weather affected our plans.

Something is doing the affecting.

Effect is usually a noun.

It means the result or consequence of something.

For example: The lack of sleep had an effect on my mood.

Or: The new rule had a positive effect on the students.

Think of it this way:

Affect = Action
Effect = End result

And yes, because English likes to keep things interesting, there are exceptions.

Effect can occasionally be used as a verb, meaning to cause something to happen:

The new policy will effect change.

And affect can be a noun in psychology, referring to someone's observable emotional expression.

But unless you're writing a psychology textbook or trying to sound particularly fancy, the A = Action, E = End result trick will get you through most everyday writing.

So the next time you're staring at affect and effect wondering which one belongs in your sentence…

Take a breath.

Remember:

Affect = Action.
Effect = End result.

And if you still get it wrong? Don't worry. That's what editors are for.

See you next Monday for another tiny grammar lesson that will probably make you question every email you've ever sent.