Affect versus effect

I’ve been proofreading Dan’s writing for five or six years now. Recently, he made a confession to me. I was shocked.

After 20 years of writing for a living, he still rolls the dice and guesses whether affect or effect is the correct word to use in any situation. I catch him using the wrong one 80 per cent of the time.

Affect is the verb. It means to act on or produce an effect or a change in.

Effect is the noun and means a result or a consequence.

I’ve recently found a handy trick that should help Dan remember. Mignon Fogarty, creator of Grammar Girl and the founder of the Quick and Dirty Tips network, suggests thinking of a big black raven. Mignon says raven has the letters A-V-E-N in it, and those stand for: Affect: Verb   Effect: Noun.

To help you remember, you could use the image of Dan ducking to escape the raven every time he uses one of these words.

Wendy Wood, proofreader

Did you enjoy Super Grammar?

Get a new and super useful grammar tip from our proofreader Wendy, directly to your inbox, once a fortnight in Typeset’s The Write Fit newsletter. Subscribe here: