affect

1
[ verb uh-fekt; noun af-ekt ]
See synonyms for: affectaffectedaffectingaffects on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)
  1. to act on; produce an effect or change in: Cold weather affected the crops.

  2. to impress the mind or move the feelings of: The music affected him deeply.

  1. (of pain, disease, etc.) to attack or lay hold of.

noun
  1. Psychology. feeling or emotion.

  2. Psychiatry. an expressed or observed emotional response: Restricted, flat, or blunted affect may be a symptom of mental illness, especially schizophrenia.

  1. Obsolete. affection; passion; sensation; inclination; inward disposition or feeling.

Origin of affect

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin affectus “acted upon, subjected to; mental or emotional state” (past participle and action noun of afficere ), equivalent to af- “toward” + fec- (combining form of facere “to make, do”) + -tus action noun suffix or -tus past participle suffix; see af-

confusables note For affect

Affect1 and effect, each both noun and verb, share the sense of “influence,” and because of their similarity in pronunciation are sometimes confused in writing. As a verb affect1 means “to act on” or “to move” ( His words affected the crowd so deeply that many wept ); affect2 means “to pretend” or “to assume” ( new students affecting a nonchalance they didn't feel ). The verb effect means “to bring about, accomplish”: Her administration effected radical changes. The noun effect means “result, consequence”: the serious effects of the oil spill. The noun affect1 pronounced with the stress on the first syllable, is a technical term in psychology and psychiatry. Affect2 is not used as a noun.

Other words for affect

Other words from affect

  • af·fect·a·ble, adjective
  • af·fect·a·bil·i·ty, noun

Words that may be confused with affect

  • affect , effect (see confusables note at the current entry)

Words Nearby affect

Other definitions for affect (2 of 2)

affect2
[ uh-fekt ]

verb (used with object)
  1. to give the appearance of; pretend or feign: to affect knowledge of the situation.

  2. to assume artificially, pretentiously, or for effect: to affect a Southern accent.

  1. to use, wear, or adopt by preference; choose; prefer: the peculiar costume he affected.

  2. to assume the character or attitude of: to affect the freethinker.

  3. (of things) to tend toward habitually or naturally: a substance that affects colloidal form.

  4. (of animals and plants) to occupy or inhabit; live in or on: Lions affect Africa. Moss affects the northern slopes.

  5. Archaic.

    • to have affection for; fancy.

    • to aim at; aspire to.

verb (used without object)
  1. Obsolete. to incline, tend, or favor (usually followed by to): He affects to the old ways.

Origin of affect

2
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Middle French affecter, from Latin affectāre “to strive after, feign” (frequentative of afficere “to do to”), equivalent to af-af- + fec- (see affect1) + -tāre frequentative suffix

synonym study For affect

1. See pretend.

confusables note For affect

See affect1.

Other words from affect

  • af·fect·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use affect in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for affect (1 of 2)

affect1

verb(əˈfɛkt) (tr)
  1. to act upon or influence, esp in an adverse way: damp affected the sparking plugs

  2. to move or disturb emotionally or mentally: her death affected him greatly

  1. (of pain, disease, etc) to attack

noun(ˈæfɛkt, əˈfɛkt)
  1. psychol the emotion associated with an idea or set of ideas: See also affection

Origin of affect

1
C17: from Latin affectus, past participle of afficere to act upon, from ad- to + facere to do

British Dictionary definitions for affect (2 of 2)

affect2

/ (əˈfɛkt) /


verb(mainly tr)
  1. to put on an appearance or show of; make a pretence of: to affect ignorance

  2. to imitate or assume, esp pretentiously: to affect an accent

  1. to have or use by preference: she always affects funereal clothing

  2. to adopt the character, manner, etc, of: he was always affecting the politician

  3. (of plants or animals) to live or grow in: penguins affect an arctic climate

  4. to incline naturally or habitually towards: falling drops of liquid affect roundness

Origin of affect

2
C15: from Latin affectāre to strive after, pretend to have; related to afficere to affect 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012