Effect

How to spell effect

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce effect

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does effect mean?

1. nounA change or result produced by an action, cause, or agent.

Effect in a sentence

• The new policy had a positive effect on morale.

• What's the side effect of this medication?

• Her words had little effect on him.

• The medicine produced a calming effect.

• The new rules will take effect from January.

Where does effect come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word comes from the Latin effectus, meaning 'an accomplishment' or 'a result', which was the past participle of efficere, 'to bring about' or 'to work out'. That verb was built from ex, meaning 'out', and facere, meaning 'to make or do', so an effect is literally something 'worked out' or 'brought forth'. English borrowed it through Old French in the 1300s, keeping both the sense of a result and the related idea of putting something into operation. The same facere root sits inside a crowd of familiar relatives such as 'factory', 'perfect', and 'defect', all of which share the idea of making or doing. The classic spelling trap is the partner verb 'affect': effect with an e is most often the noun meaning a result, while affect with an a is the verb meaning to influence.

How the word is built

• ef- (out)
• fect (do)

Words that sound like effect

They sound the same but mean different things, so the meaning decides which spelling to write.

• affect: To have an effect on someone or something; to make a difference to.