Effective

How to spell effective

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce effective

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does effective mean?

1. adjectiveSuccessfully producing the intended result or having a strong, useful impact.
2. adjectiveOperative or coming into force on a stated date, as with rules or contracts.

Effective in a sentence

• The new filing system proved highly effective at clearing the backlog.

• The new pay rates become effective from the first of January.

• Regular exercise is an effective way to manage stress.

• The policy change is effective immediately for all staff.

Where does effective come from?

Language of origin: Latin

Effective comes from the Latin effectivus, meaning 'productive' or 'practical', which was built on the verb efficere, 'to accomplish' or 'to bring about'. That verb joined ex-, meaning 'out', with facere, meaning 'to do' or 'to make', so the original idea was of something that genuinely works out a result. English took the word in the late 1300s, partly through Old French effectif, first in the sense of something that produces a real effect. The same facere root sits inside a large family of relatives such as 'affect', 'effect', 'perfect' and 'efficient', which is why the spelling trap here is the double f and the ending: writers must remember the ex- prefix has assimilated to 'ef-' before facere, giving 'eff-', and that the adjective closes with -ive rather than -tive in error.

How the word is built

• ef- (from ex-: out)
• fect (from facere: to do, make)
• -ive (adjective suffix)