effects
Americanplural noun
plural noun
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Also called: personal effects. personal property or belongings
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lighting, sounds, etc, to accompany and enhance a stage, film, or broadcast production
Synonym Usage
See property.
Etymology
Origin of effects
Plural of effect
Explanation
Effects are portable personal property not used for business. We most often hear this word in reference to one's "personal effects." The noun effects was first used in 1704 to mean "goods and property." It's your personal stuff, like keys, fine china collection, watch, car, or earrings. "Personal effects" is a phrase often associated with a last will and testament, when someone bequeaths certain items (or items in general) to someone else, but it can also refer to the belongings you remove from your pockets and fork over when you go to jail (which you'll then get back when you leave).
Vocabulary lists containing effects
The Bill of Rights
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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
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Girl in the Blue Coat
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Instead, they demonstrate that its effects on methane absorption can differ considerably depending on local temperatures, rainfall patterns, and soil conditions.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 17, 2026
The company uses AI to generate backgrounds, visual effects, and synthetic humans for its slate of films, but a lot of the performances are shot on soundstages across L.A. using actors.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026
In Indonesia's Palangkaraya -- part of the epicentre of the fires where thick haze turned the skies into apocalyptic shades of yellow and orange -- residents said they were suffering from its effects on Saturday.
From Barron's ● Oct. 17, 2026
It said the air quality effects of gas and diesel generators were also "not significant".
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
He relished every berry and showed no ill effects.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
