Are you confused about when to use affect and when to use effect? Don't worry, so is everyone else. And it's no wonder. They sound very similar, they have similar meanings, and they both have several different definitions. The easiest thing to do is just guess; you'll be right about 50 percent of the time.
But if 50 percent isn't good enough for you, I have a tip that will help you use the correct word 90 percent of the time. (We're sure aiming high today, aren't we?)
AFFECT
"Affect" is most commonly a verb that means "to act upon" or "to influence." And what is a verb? A verb is an action word. I just remember that if the definition "act upon" makes sense in the sentence, the word I want is "affect." And since all of these words start with "a," it's pretty easy to remember. Affect = action word = "act upon."
EFFECT
"Effect" is most commonly a noun that means "result" or "outcome"—something that has been caused. But since there are seven (yes, seven!) noun variations on this definition, my approach is to rule out "affect" first, and then I know that "effect" will almost always fit the bill. Another way to keep it straight is to think of the phrase "cause and effect," which are both nouns when paired this way. A cause is a thing, and an effect is a thing. And since "cause" ends with "e," the noun that follows it should start with an "e."
EXAMPLES
1. The rain affected/effected my garden in a positive way.
The test: "The rain acted upon my garden..."
It sounds weird, but it makes sense, so go with the "a" word.
The rain affected my garden in a positive way.
2. My husband's mood always affects/effects my mood.
The test: "My husband's mood always acts upon my mood."
It still sounds weird, but it makes sense, so go with the "a" word.
My husband's mood always affects my mood.
3. I feel the affects/effects of my husband's moods.
The test: "I feel the acts upon of my husband's moods."
It sounds weird and it makes NO sense, so you need the "e" word.
I feel the effects of my husband's moods.
4. My attempts to save money on groceries had little to no affect/effect on our monthly budget.
The test: "...had little to no act upon on our monthly budget."
Weird. Makes no sense. Choose "e."
To be truthful, my lame attempts to save money had no effect whatsoever.
EXCEPTIONS
Now the trick above will work only 90 percent of the time, because both "affect" and "effect" have additional definitions. If you're feeling like you finally get this for the first time in your life, I won't blame you if you decide to STOP READING HERE. But if you decide to venture on, just remember that these extra definitions are far less common than the definitions above. In fact, unless you're a semi-professional writer or a psychologist, I doubt you'd use them much. And I'd be very interested to see any of the following definitions showing up in a scrapbook.
1. Affect as a verb can also mean "to pretend" or "to assume."
Examples: "I affected a fairly convincing Australian accent."
"She affected an air of cool confidence, but her trembling hands gave her away."
2. In psychology, affect can also be a noun that means "expressed or observed emotional response."
Example: Restricted, flat, or blunted affect may be a symptom of mental illness, especially schizophrenia.
3. Effect can also be a verb that means "to cause" or "to bring about," which is quite close to its noun definition. It's most commonly followed by the word "change"—"to effect change" or "to bring about change."
Example: "I'm interested in effecting radical change in the way dishes are done around here."
Note: Grammar Girl also has a podcast about this topic, but I found her aardvark mnemonic device to be more confusing than helpful.
A Quick Note About Trav's Moods
He's really not as moody my examples may lead you to believe. He does enjoy affecting a grumpy, disgruntled demeanor, but he's very good at navigating the emotional minefield that is Angie Lucas. For example, just the other day, we were arguing heatedly in the office about something exceedingly stupid. We both ran out of steam and stood glaring at each other when he suddenly smiled and said, "You know, the light is shining on your hair like a halo, and you look like an angel." How could I stay mad after that?
