{"id":749,"date":"2014-04-30T23:23:47","date_gmt":"2014-04-30T23:23:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.princetontutoring.com\/?p=749"},"modified":"2015-01-13T23:46:29","modified_gmt":"2015-01-13T23:46:29","slug":"affect-or-effect-commonly-confused-words-grammar-boot-camp-part-v","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/2014\/04\/affect-or-effect-commonly-confused-words-grammar-boot-camp-part-v\/","title":{"rendered":"Grammar Boot Camp Part V: Affect or Effect? Commonly Confused Words"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/blog.princetontutoring.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/Snarky_affecteffect.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-751 alignleft\" alt=\"Snarky_affecteffect\" src=\"http:\/\/blog.princetontutoring.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/Snarky_affecteffect-300x228.jpg\" width=\"300\" height=\"228\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/Snarky_affecteffect-300x228.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/Snarky_affecteffect.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>What&#8217;s the difference between &#8220;affect&#8221; and &#8220;effect?&#8221; Should it be &#8220;illicit&#8221; or &#8220;elicit?&#8221; Today&#8217;s grammar boot camp session will focus on such &#8216;almost&#8217; homophones, words that sound quite similar phonetically yet have very different uses. We all get these words easily confused&#8211;so pay attention! Make sure your next essay uses the proper forms of the following commonly confused terms.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><strong><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Affect or Effect<\/strong><strong>?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As the <em>Affect v. Effect<\/em> Raven declares, <em>affect <\/em>is (most often) a verb and <em>effect <\/em>is (most often) a noun. This is the simplest distinction, and easiest to remember. To <strong>affect<\/strong> something is to <em>make a difference, <\/em>to <em>impact <\/em>in some capacity, and\/or to t<em>ouch the feelings of someone<\/em> or move him\/her emotionally. Here are some example sentences of <strong>affect used as a verb:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Finals week affected George&#8217;s sleep cycle quite negatively.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>The opera singers will most certainly affect their audience with their moving Easter demonstration.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>There is a second definition of the verb <em>affect<\/em>. To <strong>affect<\/strong> <strong><\/strong>something is <em><\/em>also to <em>pretend to have or feel something, <\/em>or to <em>use, wear, or assume <\/em>something, as in these example sentences:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>My friends often affect British accents in order to sound pretentious.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>The employer looked down upon those who affected sincerity during the interview process.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>Note: <strong>Affect<\/strong><\/em><strong> <\/strong>can also (rarely) be a noun! As a noun, <em>affect <\/em>signifies emotion or desire which influences a certain behavior or action. (Consider the noun <em>affection!) <\/em>An example sentence: &#8220;He showed no affect or response to stimulus.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Elicit v. Illicit<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Quite simply, <em>elicit <\/em>is a verb, and <em>illicit <\/em>an adjective. Are you starting to notice a trend yet? That&#8217;s right! Often the major distinction between these homophones are their roles played in sentences. To <strong>elicit <\/strong>something is to <em>bring it about, <\/em>to <em>draw out <\/em><em>from someone in reaction to one&#8217;s actions or questions. <\/em>Consider the following sentences:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>The jury&#8217;s verdict, established on archaic terms, <strong>elicited<\/strong> outrage from a progressive populace.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>The valedictorian&#8217;s speech <strong>elicited<\/strong> much laughter from the graduates.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><\/strong>Something which is <strong>illicit <\/strong>is <em>forbidden, <\/em>by laws, rules, or custom. Here are some examples:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>The high school administration decided this was the year that it would crack down on <strong>illicit<\/strong> use of alcoholic substances amongst its underage students.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>What do you consider to be more <strong>illicit <\/strong>in the context of political history: sending secret, treasonous correspondence, or publicly proclaiming wrongs?<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Except v. Accept<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><\/strong>In this pair, <strong>except <\/strong>can act as a preposition and a verb, while <strong>accept <\/strong>can only ever be a verb. As a preposition, <strong>except <\/strong>means &#8220;not including&#8221; or &#8220;other than:&#8221;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>The students work every day <strong>except<\/strong> for Monday.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>I have every season of <\/em>The Walking Dead <em>on DVD <\/em><em><strong>except<\/strong> for the current one.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>As a verb, to <strong>except <\/strong>is to <em>excl<\/em><em>ude <\/em>or <em>leave out. <\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Excepting a handful of sleepy teenagers, the movie theatre was empty.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>She excepted from her essay any mention of the significant text.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>To <strong>accept <\/strong>something is to <em>consent to receive,\u00a0<\/em><em>agree to undertake<\/em>, or <em>regard favorably. <\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>The University only <strong>accepted<\/strong> a few high school seniors from Brown High this year.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>I heartily <strong>accept<\/strong> these conditions as outlined in the treatise.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Ensure, Insure<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><\/strong>These words are tricky. Today many people use them interchangeably, but proper grammar dictates otherwise. To <strong>ensure <\/strong>something is to <em>make certain<\/em> that something shall occur or be the case, as in the following sentences:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>The teacher <strong>ensured<\/strong> that her students were prepared for the SATs.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Mr. Brandeis would like to <strong>ensure<\/strong> that his daughter is adequately prepared for the summer camp.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Insure <\/strong>is only used in reference to financial insurance coverage or to the notion of <em>protecting someone against <\/em>something.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>The changes to the constitution will <strong>insure<\/strong> against further unrest or juridical speculation.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>This laptop should be i<strong>nsured<\/strong> for at least $2500.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Complement or Compliment?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Both <strong>complement <\/strong>and <strong>compliment <\/strong>act as the same parts of speech: nouns or verbs. This will make them tougher to distinguish, for here it comes down to definition. If something <strong>complements <\/strong>or is a <strong>complement, <\/strong>it <em>completes or brings to perfection or wholeness. <\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>The two were <strong>complements<\/strong> of each other: he was quite energetic and outgoing, while she tended to be more reserved.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Her navy blazer <strong>complemented<\/strong> her rust-orange dress.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>T<strong><\/strong>o <strong>compliment <\/strong>someone is to express praise or admiration; a <strong>compliment <\/strong>is what we call this expression.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Adam <strong>complimented<\/strong> Susannah on her remarkable ability to resolve issues with diplomacy and courtesy.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>My professor gave me quite the <strong>compliment<\/strong> when he told me my essay was of the graduate level.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Curious to see where all of these tricky words come from? Check out <a href=\"http:\/\/www.oed.com\/\">The Oxford English Dictionary, <\/a>an incredible source which outlines the etymological progression of words from their first alleged conception in the English language to today&#8217;s usage.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Additional Reading:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Check out the previous posts in my six part &#8220;Grammar Boot Camp&#8221; series:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a title=\"Absolutes, Gerunds, and Infinitives: Grammar Boot Camp (Cont.)\" href=\"http:\/\/blog.princetontutoring.com\/2014\/04\/absolutes-gerunds-and-infinitives-grammar-boot-camp-cont\/\">Grammar Boot Camp Part 4 &#8211; Absolutes, Gerunds, Infinitives<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a title=\"Phrasing it Up: Grammar Boot Camp Part III\" href=\"http:\/\/blog.princetontutoring.com\/2014\/04\/phrasing-it-up-grammar-boot-camp-part-iii\/\">Grammar Boot Camp Part 3 &#8211; Phrases<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a title=\"Clauses 101: Grammar Boot Camp Part II\" href=\"http:\/\/blog.princetontutoring.com\/2014\/04\/clauses-101-grammar-boot-camp-part-ii\/\">Grammar Boot Camp Part 2 &#8211; Clauses<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a title=\"Grammar Boot Camp Part 1: Apostrophes\" href=\"http:\/\/blog.princetontutoring.com\/2014\/04\/grammar-boot-camp-part-1-apostrophes\/\">Grammar Boot Camp Part 1 &#8211; Apostrophes<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>About the author: <em>Kathleen McGunagle is a senior in Princeton University\u2019s English department and Interdisciplinary Humanities Certificate Program. Concentrating in British Renaissance Literature, she has completed a thesis this spring on Shakespeare and epistolary culture (\u201cShakespeare\u2019s Written World: Letters in <\/em><em>Hamlet, Antony and Cleopatra, <\/em><em>and <\/em><em>King Lear\u201d)<\/em><em>. Kathleen is an Academic Peer Adviser at Princeton, tutor through Princeton Tutoring, and avid performer. She has recently returned from a year of study at Worcester College, Oxford, and will be attending Boston University\u2019s M.F.A. program in Creative Writing as a fiction writer next fall. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What&#8217;s the difference between &#8220;affect&#8221; and &#8220;effect?&#8221; Should it be &#8220;illicit&#8221; or &#8220;elicit?&#8221; Today&#8217;s grammar boot camp session will focus on such &#8216;almost&#8217; homophones, words that sound quite similar phonetically yet have very different uses. We all get these words easily confused&#8211;so pay attention! Make sure your next essay uses the proper forms of the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[37,30,47],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/749"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=749"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/749\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":926,"href":"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/749\/revisions\/926"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=749"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=749"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.princetontutoring.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=749"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}