What's the difference between
and
Enter two words to compare and contrast their definitions, origins, and synonyms to better understand how those words are related.

Fact vs Effect - What's the difference?

fact | effect |

In obsolete terms the difference between fact and effect

is that fact is feat while effect is manifestation; expression; sign.

As nouns the difference between fact and effect

is that fact is action; the realm of action while effect is the result or outcome of a cause. See usage notes below.

As an interjection fact

is used before making a statement to introduce it as a trustworthy one.

As an initialism FACT

is federation Against Copyright Theft.

As a verb effect is

to make or bring about; to implement.

fact

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • (archaic) Action; the realm of action.
  • *
  • A wrongful or criminal deed.
  • * 1590 , (Edmund Spenser), (The Faerie Queene) , III.ix:
  • She was empassiond at that piteous act, / With zelous enuy of Greekes cruell fact , / Against that nation [...].
  • (obsolete) Feat.
  • *
  • An honest observation.
  • Something actual as opposed to invented.
  • * {{quote-book, year=1922, author=(Ben Travers), title=(A Cuckoo in the Nest)
  • , chapter=2 citation , passage=Mother
  • Something which has become real.
  • Something concrete used as a basis for further interpretation.
  • An objective consensus on a fundamental reality that has been agreed upon by a substantial number of people.
  • Information about a particular subject, especially actual conditions and/or circumstances.
  • Antonyms

    * (Something actual) fiction

    Derived terms

    * factual * factoid * accessory after the fact * accessory before the fact * after the fact * as a matter of fact * attorney-in-fact * contrary to fact * fact-finding * fact-finder * fact of life * fact or fiction * fact sheet * finding of fact * in fact * in point of fact * * question of fact

    See also

    * value * opinion * belief

    Interjection

    (en interjection)
  • Used before making a statement to introduce it as a trustworthy one.
  • Statistics

    *

    effect

    English

    (wikipedia effect)

    Noun

  • The result or outcome of a cause. See below.
  • *
  • , title=(The Celebrity), chapter=1 , passage=The stories did not seem to me to touch life. They were plainly intended to have a bracing moral effect , and perhaps had this result for the people at whom they were aimed.}}
  • * {{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham), title=(The China Governess)
  • , chapter=1 citation , passage=The half-dozen pieces […] were painted white and carved with festoons of flowers, birds and cupids. […]  The bed was the most extravagant piece.  Its graceful cane halftester rose high towards the cornice and was so festooned in carved white wood that the effect was positively insecure, as if the great couch were trimmed with icing sugar.}}
  • * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-08, volume=407, issue=8839, page=55, magazine=(The Economist)
  • , title= Obama goes troll-hunting , passage=The solitary, lumbering trolls of Scandinavian mythology would sometimes be turned to stone by exposure to sunlight. Barack Obama is hoping that several measures announced on June 4th will have a similarly paralysing effect on their modern incarnation, the patent troll.}}
  • Impression left on the mind; sensation produced.
  • * J. C. Shairp
  • patchwork introduced for oratorical effect
  • * Washington Irving
  • The effect was heightened by the wild and lonely nature of the place.
  • (filmology) An illusion produced by technical means (as in "special effect")
  • (sound engineering) An alteration in sound after it has been produced by an instrument.
  • (sound engineering) A device for producing an alteration in sound produced by an instrument.
  • Execution; performance; realization; operation.
  • * Shakespeare
  • That no compunctious visitings of nature / Shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between / The effect and it.
  • # (uncountable) The state of being binding and enforceable, as in a rule, policy, or law.
  • A scientific phenomenon, usually named after its discoverer.
  • (usually plural) Belongings, usually as personal effects.
  • Consequence intended; purpose; meaning; general intent; with to .
  • * Bible, Chron. xxxiv. 22
  • They spake to her to that effect .
  • (obsolete) Reality; actual meaning; fact, as distinguished from mere appearance.
  • * Denham
  • no other in effect than what it seems
  • (obsolete) Manifestation; expression; sign.
  • * Shakespeare
  • All the large effects / That troop with majesty.

    Usage notes

    The words “affect” and “effect'” can both be used as nouns or verbs, but when used as a noun the word affect is limited to uses in the psychology field, and the above definitions for ' effect are much more common. See also the usage notes as a verb below. Adjectives often applied to "effect": * biological, chemical, cultural, economic, legal, mental, moral, nutritional, personal, physical, physiological, political and social * actual, bad, beneficial, catastrophic, deleterious, disastrous, devastating, fatal, good, harmful, important, intended, likely, natural, negative, positive, potential, primary, real, secondary, significant, special, strong, undesirable and weak

    Derived terms

    (noun phrases using effect) * after-effect, aftereffect * butterfly effect * domino effect * Doppler effect * greenhouse effect * in effect * knock-on effect * Nader effect * personal effects * ripple effect * side effect * snowball effect * special effect * sound effect * spoiler effect

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To make or bring about; to implement.
  • The best way to effect change is to work with existing stakeholders.
  • Usage notes

    Effect' is often confused with “' affect ”. The latter is used to convey the influence over existing ideas, emotions and entities; the former indicates the manifestation of new or original ideas or entities: * “...new governing coalitions have effected major changes” indicates that major changes were made as a result of new governing coalitions. * “...new governing coalitions have affected major changes” indicates that before new governing coalitions, major changes were in place, and that the new governing coalitions had some influence over these existing changes.

    Statistics

    *