可译为：“大意是……”“意思是说……”“内容是……”
该短语通常用于同位语从句，修饰前面的抽象名词（如 statement, remark, letter, notice, message 等），或与表示“说/写/陈述”的动词（如 say, tell, state, write, mention 等）搭配，引出所述内容的核心。
结构：抽象名词 + to the effect that + 从句
例：
The letter was to the effect that our application had been rejected.
这封信的大意是我们的申请被拒绝了。
He made a remark to the effect that the project was too risky.
他说了一句话，大意是这个项目风险太大。
The notice on the wall is to the effect that the library will close early today.
墙上的通知内容是图书馆今天提前闭馆。
结构：动词 + something + to the effect that + 从句
（something 指代“说的话/写的内容”，可省略或用代词替代）
例：
She said to the effect that she wouldn’t be able to attend the meeting.
她的意思是说她无法参加会议。
The manager told us to the effect that we need to work overtime this week.
经理跟我们说的大意是这周要加班。
He mentioned, to the effect that we should prepare for the upcoming exam.
他提到，大意是我们要为即将到来的考试做准备。
强调“大意”而非精确引用：如果需要逐字引用，用 that 直接引导从句（如 He said that he was quitting）；若只需概括核心意思，用 to the effect that。
同义变体：
to this/that effect：单独使用（不接从句），表示“大意如此”“类似的意思”。
例：He didn’t say it directly, but he hinted to that effect.
他没明说，但暗示了那个意思。
along the lines of：与 to the effect that 近义，但更口语化，侧重“类似……的内容”。