What’s the difference between ‘affect’ and ‘effect’?

In IELTS, using vocabulary precisely is very important for getting a high score in lexical rescource. Affect and effect are often used incorrectly even by native speakers!

Lets look at the difference between these and how can they be used in a sentence accurately.

They are not exactly synonyms, they are homophones, which means they sound the same but are spelt differently. There are some exceptions when affect can be used as a verb or effect used as a noun, but generally speaking these are the rules below:

Affect is a verb   –   Effect is a noun

Affect (verb) = to have an influence on something.

Example sentences:

  • 

Train delays affect all passengers.
  • The weather really affects his moods.
  • Looking at your iPhone in the dark affects your eyesight.
  • Online gaming is negatively affecting many young peoples minds.
  • Youngsters are affected by what they watch on TV.

A synonym of ‘affect’ is ‘ influence’

So, the weather affects his moods / the weather influences his moods, but be careful here as in this second sentence below.

Right:    Smoking effects our health.
Wrong: Smoking influences our health.

It second sentence doesn’t sound right to a native speakier, unless I say:  Smoking negatively influences our health.

Effect (noun) = the impact of something or a result / outcome.

The word ‘effect’ is always preceded by an article (an,the)

Example sentences:

  • Sunny weaher has a positive effect on his moods.
  • Weather patterns are changing due to the effect of climate change.
  • The poorer members of society felt the effects of the governments radical welfare reforms.
  • The effect of the medicine left him feeling very drowsy.
  • Have you noticed any effects since you stopped drinking coffee?

Synonyms of ‘effect’ are ‘outcome’ or  ‘consequence’ but like all synonyms, be careful how you use them, as in the second sentence below.

Right:  The effect of the medicine left him feeling very drowsy.
Wrong: The consequence of the medicine left him feeling very drowsy.

Effect change (verb phrase)

In this case the word ‘effect’ is a verb phrase, however,  ‘effect change’ is often misspelt as ‘affect change’. To 

effect change is a common phrase which means to bring about changes or cause a change.

Example sentences:

  • With regard to global warming, many people believe their individual actions can effect change.
  • The protestors demonstrated against corruption so as to effect change in the government.
  • It is impossible to effect change if you take no action.

Are these sentences right or wrong?

To see how to use the words look at them in context, which of these sentences are incorrect?

1. We were going to have a picnic but the weather effected our plans

2. The news of the accident really effected him.

3. The workers wanted to effect change so they joined the union and went on strike.

4. It will take a few years to see what the effect will be of the recent education policy changes.

5. Spending a long time looking at smartphones and tablets negatively effects our eyesight.

6. The affect of the accident left him unable to walk.

7. Exposure to strong sunlight effects the skin over the long term causing premature skin ageing.

Click below to see the answers…

1.  We were going to have a picnic but the weather affected our plans

2. The news of the accident really affected him.

3.  The workers wanted to effect change so they joined the union and went on strike.  (correct)

4.  It will take a few years to see what the effect will be of the recent education policy changes. (correct)

5.  Spending a long time looking at smartphones and tablets negatively effects our eyesight. (correct)

6.  The effect of the accident left him unable to walk.

7.  Exposure to strong sunlight affects the skin over the long term causing premature skin ageing.

 

 

Leave a comment below if you have any questions.

IELTS Writing Task 1: Using prepositions correctly

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It is very important to get prepositions right in this part of the exam. I often see prepositions mistakes when I am marking task 1 reports and this is a particular issue when describing dynamic data.

Read moreIELTS Writing Task 1: Using prepositions correctly

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This is a common question many IELTS candidates have, but there seems to be misinformation out on the internet about word count in the IELTS writing section.

In fact, you can actually lose marks if the writing is under word count. Here are some examples of what I have heard about the word count in IELTS essays and writing task 1.

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True False Not Given: Useful technique

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True False Not Given and Yes No Not Given questions are some of the most challenging for IELTS candidates. However, there is a technique you can use to successfully answer these questions which is to change the statement into a question. Actually, the IELTS reading test is really about how good your vocabulary is, such as your ability to understand synonyms and your paraphrasing skills.

Read moreTrue False Not Given: Useful technique

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Many IELTS test takers think that they need to have a wide range of grammar for a high score in grammatical range and accuracy in the writing section. This is only partly true. If you have a wide range of grammar but it is not accurate then it will not score very high.

My advice is to focus on accuracy rather than range. You need to think of the reader when writing. If you are just trying to impress the examiner then you are not considering the overall coherence of the essay. Keep it concise and simple. Of course, if you have a consitently wide range of grammar with good accuracy then you are well on the way to a Band 7 or more.

Read moreWhat’s more important in grammar, range or accuracy?

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Give your talk a structure to help you achieve a higher Band score.

In IELTS speaking part 2 you have to talk for 2 minutes on a particular topic. The examiner gives you a cue card with 1 minute preparation time to make notes.

It is important to have a structure in this part of the speaking as 2 minutes is actually a long time to talk non stop, even I would find that a challenge!

The way to make this easier is to structure your talk. Remember that you really need to devlop your speech like you are telling a story. This is very important for a higher band score.

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When writing an IELTS essay it is very important to be able to extend your ideas and explain your main points. This can be done with supporting points and most importantly, specific examples. This is necessary to get a good band score in task response and helps with overall cohesion of the essay. By using examples the examiner can clearly see how you are developing your main idea in the main body paragraphs. However, the examples given must be specific to the task question and your main idea, they should also be clear, easy to follow and concise.

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Tables sometimes show up in IELTS academic writing task 1, in some cases they are in a double task such as a pie chart and table or a bar graph and table. In this lesson we have a table on its own with a lot of data. This is taken from Cambridge IELTS 7, page 30, it is a popular example of a table for IELTS teachers.

Before writing anything you will need to analyse the task, take around 4 minutes to plan, look at the categories, the countries, the year and the highest and lowest statistics. The grammar tense is important to get right, you can see below that the table shows data from 2002 , so I will write in the past tense.

Read moreIELTS academic writing task 1: Table on consumer expenditure

IELTS General: Letter to a friend about a problem at work.

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If you are doing IELTS general instead of the Academic version, then you are lucky. In the general section you only need to write a letter and it will be either formal or informal. There is a semi formal style but if you are writing to a friend, even if it is in a business setting, then just write informally.

In the Academic version of IELTS you will get one of the following: a bar chart, pie chart, line graph, map, process diagram, table, double task (pie chart and table for instance) so the general IELTS writing task 1 is much easier.

Let’s take a look at the task question below about an IELTS general letter to a friend.

Read moreIELTS General: Letter to a friend about a problem at work.