Avoiding the Ill Effects of Misusing "Affect" - The Grammar-Us Blog - Grammar-Us

The words “affect” and “effect” can be confusing, even to us grammarians! I believe that’s because, depending on the context in which they are used, they can “role-play” as something other than their traditional parts of speech. To avoid even more confusion, I will stick to tradition in this week’s post, and we can worry about the “maverick” uses at another time.

These are the most frequently used roles of “affect” and “effect”:

Affect = Verb, meaning “to produce a change.”
Example:  His failing grade will affect his chances for getting into college.

Effect = Noun, meaning “the result of a cause.”
Example:  The effects of the tornado will be felt for a long time.

When facing the “affect/effect” dilemma, I have devised a couple of tricks that help me to determine which one is correct in the context of the sentence I’m writing.  

The first one is to remember that a verb is an action word, and “affect” starts with an “a,” just like “action.”  Putting two and two together (in this case, the “a” in the two words “action” and “affect”), I can remember that, when the word is being used as an action, it needs to be affect.

I apply a similar thought process when deciding whether “effect” is the correct word to use.  As stated above, “effect” means a result. The word “result” does not have an “a” anywhere in it, but it does have an “e.”  Therefore, I can remember that the presence of an “e” in both words is a signal that, when I am trying to describe a result of something, I need to use the word with the “e” in it, which is effect.

Does this make sense?  If not, perhaps you can devise similar tricks that prod your memory into the correct choice of words.

BONUS TIP:

Two other words that can cause confusion are “then” and “than.”  But fear not!  I also have a trick for remembering which one of them is correct within the context of a sentence.  First, the definitions of each:

Then = A point in time.
Example:  If it rains, then the wedding will be moved indoors.

Than = A comparison word.
Example: Marlo’s apple is bigger than mine.

I look to the key words in the definitions of “then” and “than” to prod my memory as to which one is correct for the sentence I am writing.  For “then,” the key word in the definition is time.  Since “time” and “then” both contain an “e,” I relate them together and can remember that, when writing about the time in which something occurred, I need to use the word with the “e” – then.  Similarly, the key word in the definition of “than” is compare.  This word contains an “a,” and so does the word “than.”  Therefore, whenever I wish to compare something, I need the word that contains the “a” – than.