Background and Effect

noun

• A person's social heritage: previous experience or training.
  • usage: "he is a lawyer with a sports background"
• The part of a scene (or picture) that lies behind objects in the foreground.
  • usage: "he posed her against a background of rolling hills"
  • synonyms: ground
• Information that is essential to understanding a situation or problem.
  • usage: "the embassy filled him in on the background of the incident"
  • synonyms: background knowledge
• Extraneous signals that can be confused with the phenomenon to be observed or measured.
  • usage: "they got a bad connection and could hardly hear one another over the background signals"
  • synonyms: background signal
• Relatively unimportant or inconspicuous accompanying situation.
  • usage: "when the rain came he could hear the sound of thunder in the background"
• The state of the environment in which a situation exists.
  • usage: "you can't do that in a university setting"
  • synonyms: setting, scope
• Computer science. ( the area of the screen in graphical user interfaces against which icons and windows appear)
  • synonyms: desktop, screen background
• Scenery hung at back of stage.
  • synonyms: backdrop, backcloth

verb

• Understate the importance or quality of.
  • usage: "he played down his royal ancestry"
  • synonyms: play down, downplay

• (n.) Ground in the rear or behind or in the distance, as opposed to the foreground or the ground in front.
• (n.) A place in obscurity or retirement or out of sight.
• (n.) The space which is behind and subordinate to a portrait or group of figures.
• (n.) Anything behind, serving as a foil; as, the statue had a background of red hangings.

noun

• A phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous phenomenon.
  • usage: "the magnetic effect was greater when the rod was lengthwise"; "his decision had depressing consequences for business"; "he acted very wise after the event"
  • synonyms: consequence, outcome, result, event, issue, upshot
• An outward appearance.
  • usage: "he made a good impression"; "I wanted to create an impression of success"; "she retained that bold effect in her reproductions of the original painting"
  • synonyms: impression
• An impression (especially one that is artificial or contrived. )
  • usage: "he just did it for effect"
• The central meaning or theme of a speech or literary work.
  • synonyms: essence, burden, core, gist
• Of a law. ( having legal validity)
  • usage: "the law is still in effect"
  • synonyms: force
• A symptom caused by an illness or a drug.
  • usage: "the effects of sleep loss"; "the effect of the anesthetic"

verb

• Produce.
  • usage: "The scientists set up a shock wave"
  • synonyms: effectuate, set up
• Act so as to bring into existence.
  • usage: "effect a change"

• (n.) Impression left on the mind; sensation produced.
• (n.) Goods; movables; personal estate; -- sometimes used to embrace real as well as personal property; as, the people escaped from the town with their effects.
• (n.) Reality; actual meaning; fact, as distinguished from mere appearance.
• (v.t.) To produce, as a cause or agent; to cause to be.
• (n.) Manifestation; expression; sign.
• (n.) In general: That which is produced by an agent or cause; the event which follows immediately from an antecedent, called the cause; result; consequence; outcome; fruit; as, the effect of luxury.
• (n.) Execution; performance; realization; operation; as, the law goes into effect in May.
• (v.t.) To bring to pass; to execute; to enforce; to achieve; to accomplish.
• (n.) Consequence intended; purpose; meaning; general intent; -- with to.
• (n.) Power to produce results; efficiency; force; importance; account; as, to speak with effect.
• (n.) The purport; the sum and substance.

(DoD) The physical or behavioral state of a system that results from an action, a set of actions, or another effect.
(DoD) The result, outcome, or consequence of an action.
(DoD) A change to a condition, behavior, or degree of freedom.