Tag: effect

  • Effect and affect; Enquire and inquire

    affect verb ( Influence ) – to have an influence on someone or something, or to cause them to change

    • Both buildings were badly affected by the fire.
    • The divorce affected every aspect of her life.
    • It’s a disease which affects mainly older people.
    • I was deeply affected by the film (= It caused strong feelings in me).

    effect noun [C or U] the result of a particular influence

    • The radiation leak has had a disastrous effect on/upon the environment.
    • I tried taking tablets for the headache but they didn’t have any effect.
    • I think I’m suffering from the effects of too little sleep.
    • She has a lot of confidence which she uses to good effect (= to her advantage) in interviews.

    take effect – to produce or achieve the results you want

    • They had to wait ten minutes for the anaesthetic to take effect before they stitched up the cut.

    for effect  – mainly disapproving – If you say or do something for effect, you intentionally do it to shock people or attract their attention

    • I get the impression that she uses bad language in meetings for effect.

    in effect – in fact, or in practice

    • So in effect the government have lowered taxes for the rich and raised them for the poor.

    to that effect (also to the effect that) – used to express that what you are reporting is only a short and general form of what was really said

    • She said she was unhappy, or words to that effect.
    • He said something to the effect that he would have to change jobs if the situation continued.

    Source: Cambridge Dictionary

     

    inquire verbto ask for information

    • Shall I inquire about the price of tickets?
    • [+ question word] She rang up to inquire when her car would be ready.
    • [+ speech] “Where are we going?” he inquired politely.

    [With] … enquire and inquire, the forms are interchangeable. Some organisations, such as newspapers, tend to standardise on the in- form, but there are also those who make a distinction between, for example, an official inquiry and an informal enquiry.

    Source: Macquarie Dictionary online.