affected

¹

[uh-fek-tid]

adjective

1. acted upon; influenced.

2. influenced in a harmful way; impaired, harmed, or attacked, as by climate or disease.

3. (of the mind or feelings) impressed; moved; touched.

   She was deeply affected by their generosity.

affected

²

[uh-fek-tid]

adjective

1. assumed artificially; unnatural; feigned.

   affected sophistication; an affected British accent.

2. assuming or pretending to possess that which is not natural.

   Her affected wealth and social pedigree are so obviously false that it's embarrassing.

3. inclined or disposed.

   well affected toward the speaker's cause.

4. held in affection; fancied.

   a novel much affected by our grandparents.

affected

¹

/ əˈfɛktɪd /

adjective

1. behaving, speaking, etc, in an artificial or assumed way, esp in order to impress others

2. feigned

   affected indifference

3. archaic,  inclined; disposed

affected

²

/ əˈfɛktɪd /

adjective

1. deeply moved, esp by sorrow or grief

   he was greatly affected by her departure

2. changed, esp detrimentally

Other Word Forms

• affectedly adverb
• affectedness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of affected¹

First recorded in 1570–80; affect ¹ + -ed ²

Origin of affected²

First recorded in 1525–35; affect ² + -ed ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of affected¹

C16: from _affect ² + _-ed ²

Origin of affected²

C17: from _affect ¹ + _-ed ²

Example Sentences

Insurers are likely to be less affected, he notes.

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“Even people like my father who never knew about him were affected by his death.”

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The Wall Street Journal was among several media organizations affected by the outage.

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Each group exploits social and ethnic tensions to recruit members in the affected regions, which are among the poorest in the world.

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Agriculture remains the top employer in Kern County, and "would be dramatically affected by increased incidence of drought, and unprecedented heat waves that are already hitting the region," he added.

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Related Words

• afflicted 
• concerned 
• damaged www.thesaurus.com
• distressed 
• impressed www.thesaurus.com
• overwhelmed 
• stirred www.thesaurus.com
• touched 
• troubled www.thesaurus.com