in effect

1. Basically; in actuality. In effect, Hannah's been managing our department this whole time, just without a fancy title. I don't care who's listed as editor—I want to know which one of you, in effect, serves as editor. In effect, I'm filling John's position, yeah, but only for the week while he's out on vacation.

2. Having begun operating or taken effect. The new government has vowed to put several policies in effect, aimed at helping struggling citizens get by. The new law will be in effect on the first of January. Hey, I just got an alert on my phone—there's another tornado warning in effect.

See also: effect

in effect

producing a particular effect; effectively. In effect, this new law will raise taxes for most people. This policy harms domestic manufacturers. In effect, all our clothing will be made in foreign countries.

See also: effect

in effect

1. For all practical purposes, as in This testimony in effect contradicted her earlier statement. [Late 1500s]

2. In or into operation, as in This law will be in effect in January. Related phrases include go into effect and take effect, which mean "become operative," as in This law goes into effect January 1, or It takes effect January 1. Similarly, put into effect means "make operative," as in When will the judge's ruling be put into effect? [Late 1700s] Also see in force, def. 2.

See also: effect

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

in efˈfect

in actual practice; in fact: They may seem different, but in effect, the two systems are almost identical.

See also: effect

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

in effect

In essence; to all purposes: testimony that in effect contradicted her earlier statement.

See also: effect

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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References in periodicals archive

It was his 1978 show Dancin' that Fosse, in effect, suggested a new theatrical genre, the dance musical.

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You will most likely be looking at a five-year lease for a small rooftop antenna, with the service provider seeking several five-year renewal options, with longer terms generally in effect for inside building wiring and antenna towers because they require a substantial capital investment to build and maintain.

How to manage the business of telecommunications leases

The list had been developed in the late 1980s by two INS agents to provide some guidance to private companies developing a history and civics course that illegal immigrants were allowed to take in order to become legal under a special amnesty law then in effect. (The illegals also had the option of taking an INS administered test based on the list.) Although the 100 questions on the list were derived from the material in the INS' history and civics textbooks, they had never been intended to serve as an appropriate measure of an applicant's qualifications for citizenship.

It's the exam that fails: how the INS citizenship test misses the point

"We are in effect saying we'd rather see young people in gangs than in schools.

Heartbreak for Latinos

Her prank in effect legitimated the idea that one could play at being Japanese but that in the real world people dressed in European clothes.

Courtiers and Christians: the first Japanese emissaries to Europe

Thus, it is likely that the earliest this law could be in effect is October 1, 1993.

Statement by Lawrence B. Lindsey, member, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, before the Subcommittee on Consumer Affairs and Coinage of the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the U.S. House of Representatives, May 27, 1992

New York New Jersey, and the six New England states passed auto emission standards equal to the tough regulations already in effect in California, Texas has 90 percent of its public vehicles running on compressed natural gas, and New Jersey has announced a Global Climate Initiative.

Earth Day and beyond