Subscribe to my monthly e-newsletter to receive writing and grammar tips. Learn more about other commonly confused words with my online Business Writing course. Do you confuse 'affect' with 'effect' Learn the difference with English In A MinuteHere's Phil to clarify the difference between 'affect'. Sometimes it may mean to pretend something: He affected the behavior of a werewolf but didn’t sprout hair or fangs. Too much bacon can affect your cholesterol levels. Raven has the letters AVEN in it, which stand for affect-verb-effect-noun. Typically used as a verb, affect with an Ameans to cause a change to something: The full moon affected the lycanthropes. Grammar Girl suggests thinking of a raven to help you remember the difference. The storm affected my mood, but I used an umbrella so the rain had no impact on my hair-do. The thunderstorm affected my mood, but I used an umbrella so the rain had no effect on my hair-do.īecause many people confuse affect and effect, some people use impact instead of effect. Occasionally effect is used as a verb, meaning to cause or bring about a result. Effect, rather than affect, is correct because the phrase refers to creating, not influencing, change. Occasionally affect is a noun when used in a psychological context to mean feeling or emotion.

Consider each stakeholder’s needs, perspectives, and. The weather affected the outcome of the Grand Prix. You can increase your influence on a particular issue by authentically framing it as a benefit to the people you want on your side.

Unfortunately, there are a couple of exceptions. The easiest way to distinguish between affect and effect is to think of affect as a verb (doing word) and effect as a noun (naming word).

I can have that effect or affect