Translation guide
The English word "affect" can be expressed in Japanese through various verbs and phrases depending on whether you mean to influence something, to have an emotional impact, to pretend, or to cause a change. This guide organizes the most common and natural Japanese expressions by these core meanings.
To produce a change in something or someone, often in a neutral or objective sense.
The most direct and common translation for 'affect' in the sense of influencing or having an effect on something. Used in both formal and everyday contexts.
The weather affects your mood.
That decision will affect the entire company.
A slightly more formal or explicit way to say 'have an influence on'. Often used when the subject is a person or an event.
His words affected me greatly.
Used mainly in scientific or technical contexts to describe how one thing acts on another, like a chemical or physical effect.
This medicine affects the nerves.
To move someone emotionally, to touch their feelings, often in a deep or personal way.
Means to move someone emotionally, to impress or touch their heart. Often used for positive experiences like art, stories, or kind acts.
The movie affected many people (emotionally).
Means to resonate or strike a chord emotionally. Often used when words or music have a profound personal effect.
To behave in an artificial way, to feign an emotion, accent, or mannerism.
The most common way to say 'pretend to be/do'. Attach to a noun or verb plain form.
He affected illness.
She affected surprise.
To put on airs, to act in an affected or pretentious manner. Often negative.
To feign or pretend, often used in literary or formal contexts. Can also mean to dress up.
To bring about a change, often in a specific domain like health, economy, or environment.
In English, 'affect' is usually a verb and 'effect' is usually a noun. In Japanese, both concepts are often covered by 影響 (えいきょう). Pay attention to whether you need a verb (影響する) or a noun (影響).
影響する is for objective influence or effect. 感動させる is specifically for emotional impact. Using 影響する for emotional situations can sound cold or technical.
Literally 'to move one's heart', a natural phrase for being emotionally affected or touched.
His speech affected the audience deeply.
その言葉が心に響いた。
Those words really affected me.
He always affects a sophisticated manner.
平静を装った。
She affected calmness.
その政策は大きな変化をもたらした。
The policy affected major changes.