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Bill's Broadsides
POSTED:Mon, February 25, 2008 @ 11:24AM
Grammar geekThe same way a bird-watcher gets excited about a chance encounter with a rare winged specimen, a true grammar geek enjoys stumbling upon an uncommon bit of language when it's used correctly.So I was pleased this morning to see the editors of the Annie's Mailbox column (on Page 11 in today's print edition) use the uncommon verb form of the word effect: If your grandfather attends church, try enlisting the help of his clergyperson to effect a reconciliation before it’s too late. Effect (with an e) is most often used as a noun (meaning result); the word affect (with an a) is usually a verb (usually meaning to influence or to change). The verb affect has an additional sense, one indicating an ostentatious display or pretense. For example: Bob affected the serious tone of a television news anchor reporting a tragedy. These words are problematic for many people, however, because they both have multiple meanings, and the meanings are interrelated. The verb effect, as it is judiciously used in the example above, means to bring about. The noun affect is an odd bird indeed, and of all of the uses of effect and affect, it is the one least likely to be used correctly. It means, according to Meriam-Webster's, "the conscious subjective aspect of an emotion considered apart from bodily changes." Since I can't seem to wrap my mind around that definition, I must conclude that I am incapable of using affect as a noun. Not effectively, at least.
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Bill Ackerbauer Assistant City Editor A Johnstown native, Bill Ackerbauer began his journalism career in 1996 as a beat reporter with The Leader-Herald. He returned to the Glove Cities in 2000 after working in various editorial positions with newspapers in Saratoga Springs, Schenectady and New Hampshire. He has degrees in English literature from Union College and the University at Albany, where he teaches courses in journalism. In addition to writing, editing and teaching, Bill is an aficionado of old-time folk and blues music and performs locally on acoustic guitar, banjo and other traditional instruments. He lives in Johnstown with his wife, Jennifer, and their two sons, Liam and Carter.
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