effective

English

Etymology

From French effectif, from Latin effectīvus (“productive; effective”), from efficiō (“I make; I bring about”).

Pronunciation

• (weak vowel distinction) IPA^(key): /ɪˈfɛktɪv/
• (weak vowel merger) IPA^(key): /əˈfɛktɪv/
• Rhymes: -ɛktɪv

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

effective (comparative more effective, superlative most effective)

1. Having the power to produce a required effect or effects.

   Synonym: efficacious

   The pill is an effective method of birth control.

2. Producing a decided or decisive effect.

   The president delivered an effective speech!

   • 1651, Jer[emy] Taylor, The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living. […], 2nd edition, London: […] Francis Ashe […], →OCLC:

     Whosoever is an effective, real cause of doing his neighbour wrong, is criminal.

3. Efficient, serviceable, or operative, available for useful work.

   How long does it take to make a bunch of civilians an effective military force?

   My effective income after taxes and child support is $500 a month.

   The effective radiated power is determined by multiplying the transmitter power output with the antenna gain.

   The effective voltage of an alternating current is 0.7 times its peak voltage.

   Antonym: nominal

4. Actually in effect.

   The curfew is effective at midnight.

5. (geometry, of a cycle or divisor) Having no negative coefficients.
6. (physics, for any effective theory) approximate; Not describing the fundamental dynamic changes in some system as they happen.

Usage notes

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary from 1913 still lists efficient and effective as synonyms, but all major dictionaries now show that these words now only have different meanings in careful use. Use of both for the other meaning is however widespread enough that Longman's Exam Dictionary, for example, finds it necessary to proscribe the use of one for the other with several examples at each entry and provides the following summary:

• efficient = working quickly and without waste
• effective = having the desired effect

Derived terms

• brake mean effective pressure
• cost-effective
• effective altruism
• effective compression
• effective dose
• effective energy
• effective nuclear charge
• effective radiated power
• effective stack size

 

Related terms

• effect
• effectivity
• effectual
• efficacious
• efficacity
• efficacy
• efficiency
• efficient
• pseudoeffective

 

Translations

having the power to produce a required effect or effects

• Arabic: فَعَّال‎ (faʕʕāl)
• Belarusian: эфекты́ўны (efjektýŭny)
• Bulgarian: ефекти́вен (bg) (efektíven)
• Catalan: eficaç
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Danish: virksom, effektiv
• Dutch: efficiënt (nl), werkzaam (nl), effectief (nl)
• Egyptian: (mnḫ)
• Finnish: tehokas (fi), vaikuttava (fi), tehoava, toimiva (fi), tuloksia tuottava
• French: efficace (fr) m or f
• German: wirksam (de), effektiv (de)
• Gothic: 𐍅𐌰𐌿𐍂𐍃𐍄𐍅𐌴𐌹𐌲𐍃 (waurstweigs)
• Greek:

  Ancient: πρακτικός (praktikós), δραστήριος (drastḗrios), ἐνεργής (energḗs), ἐνεργητικός (energētikós)

• Hebrew: יָעִיל‎ (he) (ya'íl), אפקטיבי‎ (he) (efektívi)
• Hungarian: hatásos (hu), hatékony (hu), hathatós (hu), eredményes (hu), célravezető (hu)
• Irish: éifeachtach
• Italian: efficace (it)
• Kazakh: тиімді (tiımdı), нәтижелі (nätijelı)
• Latin: efficax (la)
• Latvian: iedarbīgs
• Malay: berkesan
• Maori: pekepakihiwi
• Norwegian: virkningsfull
• Polish: efektywny (pl), skuteczny (pl)
• Portuguese: eficaz (pt), efetivo (pt)
• Romanian: efectiv (ro) m, eficient (ro) m, efectent m
• Russian: эффекти́вный (ru) (effektívnyj)
• Sanskrit: साधन (sa) (sādhana)
• Scottish Gaelic: èifeachdach
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: учинко̀вит, е̏фектӣван

  Roman: učinkòvit (sh) m, ȅfektīvan (sh)

• Slovak: účinný
• Sorbian:

  Lower Sorbian: statkowny, efektiwny

• Spanish: efectivo (es), eficaz (es)
• Swedish: effektiv (sv), verksam (sv), verkningsfull
• Ukrainian: ефекти́вний (efektývnyj)
• Welsh: effeithiol (cy)

producing a decided or decisive effect

• Bulgarian: резултатен (bg) (rezultaten)
• Catalan: eficaç
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Danish: effektiv, virksom
• Dutch: effectief (nl)
• Finnish: vaikuttava (fi)
• French: efficace (fr) m or f, décisif (fr) m
• German: wirksam (de)
• Greek: αποτελεσματικός (el) (apotelesmatikós)

  Ancient: ἀνύσιμος (anúsimos), ἀνυστικός (anustikós)

• Hungarian: hatásos (hu), megfelelő (hu), találó (hu)
• Indonesian: efektif (id)
• Latin: efficax (la)
• Latvian: iedarbīgs
• Maori: pekepakihiwi
• Norwegian: virkningsfull
• Portuguese: eficaz (pt)
• Romanian: eficace (ro) m or f
• Russian: результати́вный (ru) (rezulʹtatívnyj)
• Scottish Gaelic: èifeachdach
• Swedish: effektiv (sv)
• Ukrainian: результати́вний (rezulʹtatývnyj)

efficient, serviceable, or operative

• Bulgarian: ефикасен (bg) (efikasen)
• Catalan: eficaç
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: vaikuttava (fi), tehollinen, tosiasiallinen (fi), käytettävissä oleva
• French: efficace (fr) m or f
• German: effektiv (de), wirkungsvoll (de)
• Hungarian: effektív (hu), tényleges (hu), valóságos (hu), hasznos (hu), hasznavehető, használható (hu), működő (hu)
• Italian: efficiente (it)
• Norwegian: effektiv (no)
• Portuguese: eficaz (pt)
• Romanian: plin de efect, eficace (ro) m or f
• Russian: эффекти́вный (ru) (effektívnyj), де́йственный (ru) (déjstvennyj)
• Scottish Gaelic: èifeachdach
• Slovak: účinný, skutočný
• Swedish: verksam (sv), funktionell (sv), fungerande (sv)
• Tagalog: mapakipakinabang

actually in effect

• Bulgarian: действи́телен (bg) (dejstvítelen)
• Catalan: efectiu (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Dutch: effectief (nl)
• Finnish: voimassa (fi), voimassa oleva
• French: en vigueur (fr)
• German: wirksam (de), in Kraft (de)
• Hungarian: hatályos (hu), érvényes (hu), hatályban lévő, érvényben lévő
• Indonesian: efektif (id)
• Norwegian: virksom
• Polish: efektywny (pl)
• Portuguese: efetivo (pt)
• Russian: де́йствующий (ru) (déjstvujuščij), действи́тельный (ru) (dejstvítelʹnyj)
• Swedish: träder i kraft

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Ido: ^{(please verify)} efikiva (io)

Noun

effective (plural effectives)

1. (military) a soldier fit for duty
   • 1876, Dabney Herndon Maury, Southern Historical Society Papers: Volume 2, Number 4, Recollections of the Elkhorn Campaign:

     The Army of the West reached Corinth sometime after the battle of Shiloh. We were 15,000 effectives, and brought Beauregard's effective force up to 45,000 men.

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /e.fɛk.tiv/

• Audio

  (file)

• Homophone: effectives

Adjective

effective

1. feminine singular of effectif

Latin

Adjective

effectīve

1. vocative masculine singular of effectīvus