The Causative Have

The Causative Have. English grammar with exercises. Free eBook and Free printable PDF. Esl printable Worksheets

The Causative Have

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The Causative Have

We use the causative in English to say that we have arranged for someone to do something for us.
He had his jacket cleaned.
(He didn’t clean it himself.)
The causative is formed with ‘have + object + past participle’

The past participle has a passive meaning.

Questions and negations of the verb ‘have’ are formed with do/does or did in the past simple.
Did you have your camera fixed?

We also use ‘have something done’ to talk about an unpleasant experience.
Peter had his phone stolen last night.

In informal conversations we can use ‘get’ instead of ‘have’.
She’s getting her hair done again.

It is important to have the correct word order:
‘John had his car repaired.’ is very different to ‘John had repaired his car.’
In the first sentence John  arranged for someone else to repair his car. In the second sentence he did it himself.

The causative can be used with most verb forms and is also formed with the infinitive and -ing forms.
He should have his car repaired.
It’s worth having his car repaired.

The Causative Have

Exercises

EXERCISE 1

Read about each situation and write sentences with “have something done”.

e.g.  Melanie has gone to the hairdresser’s.

  She has had her hair cut

1. Someone stole all our money.
2.   The technician repaired Julia’s television last year.
3.   The photographer is taking a photo of Alice.
4.   Jimmy fell off his bike and broke it.
5.   Last weekend someone painted Robert’s bedroom.
6.   I’ve lost my key.
7.   Julia broke her leg, she needs someone’s help to clean her house.
8.   The children broke Simone’s window.
9.   It’s Sylvie’s birthday. She would like a cake.
10.   Bob went to London. He lost his luggage.
11.   John usually cleans his clothes at Clean-it-up.
12.   Paul’s leg was broken in a fight.

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EXERCISE 2.

Complete the sentences by using the words in brackets.  

e.g. Jill had her hair cut yesterday by her friend.  

1. We ________________________ (the house/paint) at the moment.
2. I lost my key. I’ll have to ________________________ (another key/make).
3. When was the last time you ________________________ (you hair/cut)
4. You look different.  ____________________________ (you/your/hair cut).
5. ___________________________ (you/a newspaper/deliver) to your house?
6. This coat is dirty.  I must ______________________ (it/clean).
7. If you want to wear earrings, why don’t you _________________________ (your ears/pierced).
8. What are those work-men doing in the garden?
9. Oh, we _____________________________ (a swimming pool/build).
10. Sue didn’t make the curtains herself.  She ______________ (them/make).

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EXERCISE 3.

We can also use the causative have to say that something happened to somebody or their belongings.  

e.g. Jane’s dog was kidnapped.

What happened to Jane? She had her dog kidnapped.

1. George’s nose was broken in a fight.  

What happened to George? _____________________________________.

• Sarah’s bag was stolen on a train.  

What happened to Sarah? ______________________________________.

• Fred’s hat was blown off in the wind.

What happened to Fred? _______________________________________.

• Diane’s passport was taken away from her by the police.

What happened to sue? ________________________________________.

• John’s coat was taken when he was in the disco.

What happened to John? _______________________________________.

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EXERCISE 4.

Make sentences which have the same meaning as the original, using causative have.

e.g. When did you last go to the dentist?

When did you last have your teeth checked?

1. My car is at the garage, it needs to be repaired.
2. I go to the hairdresser’s every week, Jacques washes and blow dries it beautifully.
3. Simon does the gardening for me on Mondays, he has really green fingers.
4. I hate cleaning. Julie cleans my flat for me every other day.
5. Louise is an absolutely divine interior designer. She arranged everything in Greg’s new place for him impeccably!  
6. Well, the house in Spain is nearly finished. The workmen are putting the finishing touches to it.
7. Sebastian never does his own homework. He always gets Tim to do it for him.
8. Michael is really lucky. His mum cleans, washes and cooks for him.
9. Julian’s wife is a bit of a doormat. She irons his shirts and makes his sandwiches every morning!
10. My mum is hopeless at anything electrical. Her neighbour even changes her light bulbs for her!

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