verb (used with object) to act on; produce an effect or change in. Cold weather affected the crops. Synonyms: alter , modify , sway , influence to act on; produce an effect or change in. Cold weather affected the crops. to impress the mind or move the feelings of. The music affected him deeply. Synonyms: stir , touch to impress the mind or move the feelings of. The music affected him deeply. (of pain, disease, etc.) to attack or lay hold of. (of pain, disease, etc.) to attack or lay hold of. Psychology. feeling or emotion. Psychology. feeling or emotion. Psychiatry. an expressed or observed emotional response. Restricted, flat, or blunted affect may be a symptom of mental illness, especially schizophrenia. Psychiatry. an expressed or observed emotional response. Restricted, flat, or blunted affect may be a symptom of mental illness, especially schizophrenia. Obsolete. affection; passion; sensation; inclination; inward disposition or feeling. Obsolete. affection; passion; sensation; inclination; inward disposition or feeling. verb (used with object) to give the appearance of; pretend or feign. to affect knowledge of the situation. to give the appearance of; pretend or feign. to affect knowledge of the situation. to assume artificially, pretentiously, or for effect. to affect a Southern accent. to assume artificially, pretentiously, or for effect. to affect a Southern accent. to use, wear, or adopt by preference; choose; prefer. the peculiar costume he affected. to use, wear, or adopt by preference; choose; prefer. the peculiar costume he affected. to assume the character or attitude of. to affect the freethinker. to assume the character or attitude of. to affect the freethinker. (of things) to tend toward habitually or naturally. a substance that affects colloidal form. (of things) to tend toward habitually or naturally. a substance that affects colloidal form. (of animals and plants) to occupy or inhabit; live in or on. Lions affect Africa. Moss affects the northern slopes. (of animals and plants) to occupy or inhabit; live in or on. Lions affect Africa. Moss affects the northern slopes. Archaic. to have affection for; fancy. to aim at; aspire to. to have affection for; fancy. to have affection for; fancy. to aim at; aspire to. to aim at; aspire to. verb (used without object) Obsolete. to incline, tend, or favor (usually followed by to ). He affects to the old ways. Obsolete. to incline, tend, or favor (usually followed by to ). He affects to the old ways. to put on an appearance or show of; make a pretence of to affect ignorance to put on an appearance or show of; make a pretence of to affect ignorance to imitate or assume, esp pretentiously to affect an accent to imitate or assume, esp pretentiously to affect an accent to have or use by preference she always affects funereal clothing to have or use by preference she always affects funereal clothing to adopt the character, manner, etc, of he was always affecting the politician to adopt the character, manner, etc, of he was always affecting the politician (of plants or animals) to live or grow in penguins affect an arctic climate (of plants or animals) to live or grow in penguins affect an arctic climate

to incline naturally or habitually towards falling drops of liquid affect roundness to incline naturally or habitually towards falling drops of liquid affect roundness to act upon or influence, esp in an adverse way damp affected the sparking plugs to act upon or influence, esp in an adverse way damp affected the sparking plugs to move or disturb emotionally or mentally her death affected him greatly to move or disturb emotionally or mentally her death affected him greatly (of pain, disease, etc) to attack (of pain, disease, etc) to attack psychol the emotion associated with an idea or set of ideas See also affection psychol the emotion associated with an idea or set of ideas See also affection 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 = RememberA = Affect is aV = VerbE = Effect is aN = NounHere’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 . Commonly Confused 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 Word Forms affectability noun affectable adjective Inflected Forms Origin of affect 1 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; see af- Origin of affect 2 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- ( see affect 1 ) + -tāre frequentative suffix Affect is most often used as a verb meaning “to have an impact on,” as in “The tornado barreling towards us will affect our picnic plans.” As a verb, affect can also mean “to feign an appearance,” as in, “Don’t let that surfer’s California accent fool you. Although she affects a convincing ‘Dude, that was rad,’ she is from Minnesota and just moved out West last month.” Don’t let that affect your friendship, though, she’s probably really fun. Vocabulary lists containing affect The Vocabulary.com Top 1000 Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide! PARCC: Language of the Test (Grade7) Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use! Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time! Example Sentences Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com. See Examples For: The team also found that aging did not appear to affect every organ system in the same way. From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026 He added: "We cannot exclude that the escalation will also affect our territory... I hope not." From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026 In a district that is the third-youngest in population in the country, the simmering uncertainty among Gen Z and millennial voters in particular could affect turnout or results. From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026 Ministers said they would spell out that governments can change repayment rules and that different career choices can affect how much borrowers repay. From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026 In public statements, they tried to walk a fine line between keeping people informed about radiation leaks that could affect them and holding back details so people wouldn’t experience unnecessary fear. From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland “The medium-term impact of Fed tightening on equities will depend on how tightening affects earnings growth, which is the most important driver of stocks,” they said. From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026 Osteoarthritis affects 33 million Americans and more than 500 million people worldwide, costing the U.S. roughly $136 billion annually in medical care and lost productivity. From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026 The condition affects less than 1% of people in the U.S. From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026 You never really know who they support or why they do this, but when this affects your kids there are not many choices to take. From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026 All I know is that it affects her kidneys and makes her too weak to watch my younger brothers, or do anything for that matter. From "The Freedom Writers Diary" by The Freedom Writers Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023 Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Dictionary.com's Learning Companion Go beyond just looking up words. Remember them forever with VocabTrainer.