To disfigure the mouth -- this is how I would interpret it -- to disfigure the mouth has a primary effect in rendering one at least temporarily speechless.

把嘴巴丑化--这就是我所理解的-,丑化自己的嘴巴使自己暂时不能说话,它是有十分重要影响的。

耶鲁公开课 - 弥尔顿课程节选

Inflation was believed to be driven largely by non-monetary factors, and most people believed that if you tried to control inflation using monetary policy, the primary effect would be to throw a lot of people out of work.

FORBES: The Swing of the Monetary Pendulum

Too often, the primary concern of competitive media marketplaces is not the effect a story will have, but the attention it will generate.

FORBES: The Media is an Accomplice in Public Shootings: A Call for a "Stephen King" Law

Not so "The Nance, " in which he's found a way to use the campiness that is his primary theatrical color to relevant and moving effect.

WSJ: The Tears of a Clown | The Nance | Motown: The Musical | Theater Reviews by Terry Teachout