Learning collocations makes our communication more vibrant and descriptive. It enlivens it. Let’s have a look at 6 adjectives that collocate with the word effect.

 

Calming effect

“At the end of a stressful week,

the absolute silence in the snowed forest

had a calming effect on her.”

(also soothing effect)

Cumulative effect

“They know about the cumulative effects of solar exposure, but that doesn’t stop them from sunbathing when the sun is strongest.”

Increasing gradually over time

(Also: snowball effect)

 

Catastrophic effect

“Citizens are starting to suffer the consequences of the catastrophic effect that sanctions have on the country’s economy.”

=disastrous, or undesirable

 

 

Ripple effect

“The banking crisis had a ripple effect on markets across the world.”

Causing a series of effects as a consequence of the first one (also domino or knock-on effect)

 

 

Side effects

“Listening to the doctor talking about the side effects of chemotherapy was a hard pill to swallow.”

Undesirable effects that are not intended.

 

 

 

 

 

Placebo effect

“They didn’t have any medicine but the hot drink they gave her had a placebo effect that relieved the pain and helped the girl fall asleep.”

The girl took the drink for medicine and that helped her relax and fall asleep.

 

 

And now, I encourage you to create your own examples with these collocations and more.

Take a step forward to boost your English with collocations starting today.

Have fun learning!