Can anyone explain the difference between 'affected' and 'effected'?

Question

And when it is appropriate to use them in a sentence?
I have always been stumped by this.

For example:
In this sentence which word would be correct?

"When your view of the world is changed you're emotionally ____________ ?

Is it effected of affected? And why?

Answer 1

"Affect," except for the specialists mentioned below, is a verb, meaning to cause change in something. "His headache affected his ability to concentrate." Verbs are words of action. So think "A" — Affect, Action — something is Acting on something else.

"Effect" is usually a noun, a word for a thing, in this case a result of something.

"Aspirin had the desired effect, and he aced the exam." Think "E" for End Product.

So much for the most common situations.

A less common (but useful) form of "effect" is a verb meaning to bring about or cause to happen. "She effected a revolution with her challenge to the grading system."

A nuanced (and useful) form of "affect" is a verb meaning to move, emotionally, as in "The scene affected her greatly" or "It was a profoundly affecting moment."

And in the social sciences, alas, "affect" (pronounced AFF'ekt) can be a noun, meaning a feeling or emotion as shown or described by a patient. But we can leave that one to the social scientists.

Addendum, 3/9/99

Rosalind Warfield-Brown, who teaches at Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia and works as a freelance editor, has a word she uses to help people get around that mental block — VANE. That's Verb=Affect / Noun=Effect. Seems foolproof for the two basic meanings.

Answer 2

Both are verbs. but as a verb, 'effect' should not be confused with 'affect'. He 'effected' an entrance means 'he got in (somehow)' , as in 'managed', but this wont 'affect' me means 'My life wont be changed by this'.
So you need not be stumped or affected by this anymore as you have effected a way out by asking it on Yahoo answers.
And when the view of your world is changed you are emotionally.....? yes, affected. :)

Answer 3

To affect is to cause the result. It's a verb
The effect is the result.

He set (affected) the catastrophe (effect) in motion.

Answer 4

Affect means to move or change something.
Affected means that something was moved or changed.
"Watching the movie affected me so much that I cried."

Effect would be the result of the move or change and is usually a noun.
But Effect, as a verb, means to bring to pass or to accomplish.
So Effected, as a past tense verb, would mean "brought to pass, or accomplished".

"Thomas Edison effected a means to produce light from a sealed glass bulb with a filament inside"


Isn't that as clear as muddy water?

Answer 5

Effected Definition

Answer 6

Affect involves emotion and could be applied in relation to other abstract ideas. Effect is used in relation to concrete subjects such as science or math.

The answer to your question is "affected."

Answer 7

ok..affected is something that is acted upon or influenced. For example Hurricane Katrina affected millions of people because it made things difficult for them; thats affected. Hurricane Katrina influenced the people involved
Effected can also mean influenced, but its not acted upon. it is the result. Like for example, The effect of Hurricane Katrina was the flooding that happened.
Hope u understand this. if you dont you can try going on www.dictionary.com

Answer 8

in that sentence the correct usage would be "AFFECTED".

The verb "TO EFFECT" signifies a transitive verb , the act of CAUSING a change in the object of the verb. It means to bring about some state or condition in the object.

"TO AFFECT" means to influence , to cause a variation or change in someone or something. It is a more direct method of expressing what "to effect" does.

Main difference is that "to effect" requires that it be followed by some word which DEFINE or specify exactly what was brought about by the verb "to effect" . That is: "to effect" WHAT?????

But "to affect" does not require it be followed by specific words which specify or define exactly HOW the subject of the verb was affected. It simply states that the subject of the verb was influenced or changed in some manner by something - WITHOUT having to define what specifically caused the change or influenced them. You could say: "the weather affects everyone." or you could simply say " people get affected." it's OPTIONAL WHETHER OR NOT TO SPECIFY WHAT EXACTLY affected someone or something. but in the case of "to effect" you MUST specify or define what was caused, created or changed by the verb "to effect"

Example: "The new administrator EFFECTED major changes in how the school was run."

" All the students were AFFECTED." - Note that here we don't have to specify HOW or by whom or by what the students were affected. It's optional. The sentence is complete with or without a specification or definition of how the students were affected. but in the case of "Effected" we MUST show exactly what was caused or implemented by the verb "to EFFECT".

I hope this clears up matters somewhat.

Answer 9

affected means changed or influenced: Her looks affected the way people thought of her.

effected means caused or brought about : She effected a change in school policy by protesting in front of the library.

In your example it would be "affected."

Answer 10

Well, there is a difference not much difference.Effect is a noun and Affect is a verb.