affect

English Online Dictionary. What means affect‎? What does affect mean?

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English affecten, from Latin affectāre, from Latin affectus, the participle stem of Latin afficere (“to act upon, influence, affect, attack with disease”), from ad- + facere (“to make, do”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: ə.fĕkt', IPA^(key): /əˈfɛkt/
• Rhymes: -ɛkt
• Homophone: effect (weak vowel merger)
• Hyphenation: af‧fect

Verb

affect (third-person singular simple present affects, present participle affecting, simple past and past participle affected)

1. (transitive) To influence or alter.

   Synonyms: alter, change, have an effect on, influence
3. (transitive) To move to emotion.

   Synonyms: move, touch
4. (transitive, pathology) Of an illness or condition, to infect or harm (a part of the body).

   Synonyms: attack, harm, infect

5. (transitive, archaic) To dispose or incline.
6. (transitive, archaic) To tend to by affinity or disposition.
7. (transitive, archaic) To assign; to appoint.
8. (transitive, Scots law) To burden (property) with a fixed charge or payment, or other condition or restriction.

Usage notes

Affect and effect are sometimes confused. Affect conveys influence over something that already exists, but effect indicates the manifestation of new or original ideas or entities:

• "...new policies have effected major changes in government."
• "...new policies have affected major changes in government."

The former indicates that major changes were made as a result of new policies, while the latter indicates that before new policies, major changes were in place, and that the new policies had some influence over these existing changes.

The verbal noun uses of affect are distinguished from the verbal noun uses of effect more clearly than the regular verb forms. An affect is something that acts or acted upon something else. However, an effect is the result of an action (by something else).

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English affecten, from Anglo-Norman affecter (“strive after”), Middle French affecter (“feign”), and their source, Latin affectāre (“to strive after, aim to do, pursue, imitate with dissimulation, feign”), frequentative of afficere (“to act upon, influence”) (see Etymology 1, above).

Pronunciation

• enPR: əfĕkt', IPA^(key): /əˈfɛkt/
• Rhymes: -ɛkt

Verb

affect (third-person singular simple present affects, present participle affecting, simple past and past participle affected)

1. (transitive) To make a show of; to put on a pretense of; to feign; to assume. To make a false display of. [from 16th c.]

   Synonyms: fake, simulate, feign
2. (obsolete, transitive) To aim for, to try to obtain. [15th–19th c.]
3. (transitive, rare) To feel affection for (someone); to like, be fond of. [from 16th c.]
4. (transitive, obsolete) To show a fondness for (something); to choose. [from 16th c.]
   • 1825, William Hazlitt, “On the Conduct of life: or Advice to a schoolboy” in Table-Talk Volume II, Paris: A. & W. Galignani, p. 284,^[1]

     Do not affect the society of your inferiors in rank, nor court that of the great.

Derived terms

• affected
• affectedly
• affectedness
• affectation
• affecter

Translations

Etymology 3

From Middle English affect, from Latin affectus, adfectus (“a state of mind or body produced by some (external) influence, especially sympathy or love”), from afficere (“to act upon, influence”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: ă'fĕkt, IPA^(key): /ˈæ.fɛkt/

Noun

affect (plural affects)

2. (psychology) A subjective feeling experienced in response to a thought or other stimulus; mood, emotion, especially as demonstrated in external physical signs. [from 19th c.]
3. (obsolete) One's mood or inclination; mental state. [14th–17th c.]
4. (obsolete) A desire, an appetite. [16th–17th c.]

Usage notes

Affect and effect can both be used as nouns or verbs, but when used as a noun the word affect is limited to the above psychology uses and the definitions for effect are much more common. See also the usage notes as a verb above.

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

References

• “affect”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “affect”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
• “affect, v.” in the Dictionary of the Scots Language, Edinburgh: Scottish Language Dictionaries.

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin affectus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /a.fɛkt/

Noun

affect m (plural affects)

1. (psychology, philosophy) affect; emotion

Related terms

• affectif

See also

• intellect

Further reading

• “affect”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Scots

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /əˈfɛk(t)/

Etymology 1

Verb

affect (third-person singular simple present affects, present participle affectin, simple past affectit, past participle affectit)

1. to affect
2. (law) to burden property with a fixed charge or payment, or other condition or restriction

Etymology 2

Noun

affect (plural affects)

1. affect, mood

References

• Eagle, Andy, ed. (2016) The Online Scots Dictionary, Scots Online.