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GMAT GRAMMAR BOOK]
created by: bbedited by: dzyubamCausative verbs are used to indicate that one person causes another person to do something for them. The true causative verbs are:
have, get and
make. NOTE: Causative verbs are normally used with people, although things can sometimes be “made to do something” also.
Have / Get
The clause following
have or
get can be either active or passive. Study the following examples. (See more information on passive voice on [highlight]page ____[/highlight].)
Active
Havesubject + have + complement + verb in simple form . . .
I
had my brother
feed the dog all week. (My brother fed the dog.)
Active
Getsubject + get + complement + verb in infinitive . . .
I
got my brother to feed the dog all week. (My brother fed the dog.)
PASSIVE
Have/Getsubject + have OR get + complement + verb in past participle . . .
I had the dog fed.
OR I got the dog fed. (The dog was fed by somebody.)
Examples of active causative clauses:
Gary
is getting his girlfriend
to pick up the dry cleaning.
The president
had the reporters
wait outside the conference room.
Martha
is having her friend
help with her assignment.
The doctor
got his patient
to take the bitter medicine.
Examples of passive causative clauses:
Robert
has his stories
published each month.
My sister
had her dress
altered for the wedding by my aunt.
I can’t believe she
is getting her hair
colored like mine!
My son
is having his eyes
tested this week.
We all
had our heads
shaved before the big game.
Make
The causative verb
make can only be followed by a clause in the active voice.
Make is a much stronger command than
have or
get and means to force someone to do something.
subject + make + complement + verb in simple form . . .
The judge
made me
give him my driver’s license.
NOTE: Even though
make means the same as
force, if
force is used then the infinitive of the verb is used.
subject + force + complement + verb in simple form . . .
The judge
forced me
to give him my driver’s license.
Examples of sentences using the causative verb
make:
My boss
makes me
finish the daily report each day before I go home.
I
made my little sister
give me half of her candy.
Our teacher
is making us
bring our homework to him tomorrow.
Ralph
had made us
promise not to tell what he did before he entered the forbidden zone.
Let / Help – Verbs often considered Causative
Let and
help are often considered to be causative verbs, but they are actually not. These words request permission or assistance from another person.
Let means
allow or
permit. When
let is used, the simple form of the verb is used with it.
subject + let + complement + verb in simple form . . .
However, if
allow or
permit is used then the infinitive of the verb must be used with them.
subject + allow OR permit + complement + verb in infinitive form . . .
Examples:
Mark’s dad
let him
play in the baseball game.
Mark’s dad
allowed him
to play in the baseball game.
Mark’s dad
permitted him
to play in the baseball game.
My boss
let me
leave early from work.
They
are going to let me
enter the ancient text archives to do research.
Jamie always
lets her kids
have slumber parties on the weekends.
Ralph
is letting his son
go to the concert.
Help, which means
assist, is also usually followed by the simple form of the verb, but can be followed by the infinitive in some cases.
subject + help + complement + verb in simple form OR verb in infinitive form
Examples:
Lisa
helped her mom
fold the clothes.
The librarian
helped me
find the reference book I needed.
Her stories always
help him
to sleep better.
Exercise 26: Using Causative Verbs
Fill in the blank with the correct form of the verb in parentheses in the following sentences.
1. Johnny’s mom made him ____________________ (clean) his room.
2. I am having the seamstress ____________________ (alter) my dress.
3. My parents got me _____________________ (visit) my aunt before leaving town.
4. Our boss let us _____________________ (leave) the meeting early.
5. We should help Jennifer _____________________ (study) for her final exam.
6. They will have to get the judge ____________________ (sign) the form before they can proceed.
7. The Johnson’s always have us ____________________ (feed) their dog for them during their summer vacation.
8. Ralph is getting Julia ____________________ (write) his essay for him.
9. The dog made the cat ____________________ (climb) the tree quickly.
10. I got the mechanic ____________________ (fix) my car before he went to lunch.
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