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
Related Words
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.
Occupational burnout is a health condition that stems from persistent and prolonged periods of stress that can have significant knock-on health effects.
From BBC • May 22, 2026
The war’s effects on opportunistic aggression are indeterminate at best.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 21, 2026
The analysis is particularly important because it focused on the drugs' long-term effects rather than short-term outcomes.
From Science Daily • May 21, 2026
Her research also found that male caregivers experienced somewhat larger divorce effects than women.
From MarketWatch • May 21, 2026
“The combination of their strangeness and your not-strangeness should reverse the effects of this magical nonsense.”
From "The Last Last-Day-of-Summer" by Lamar Giles
Definitions 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.
