Effect and affect are two words in English language which are often confused with each other. Effect is a noun which means a result or a change that is a consequence of an action or a decision. On the other hand, affect is a verb which means to have an influence on something. For example, “The new policy had an effect on the company’s profits” and “The new policy affected the company’s profits”. Effect can also be used as a verb, meaning to cause something to happen. Therefore, the difference between effect and affect is that effect is a noun and affect is a verb.