Section 3 - Structures with get and have
Causatives
We can use get and have in both active and passive patterns.
• The active pattern, meaning 'cause or order someone to do something', is get + person + to-infinitive, or have + person + infinitive without to:
I'll get the waiter to bring you the menu.
I'll have the waiter bring you the menu.
Note that have is much more common in American English; get is common in spoken British English.
• The passive pattern, meaning 'arrange for somebody else to do something', is get / have + object + past participle:
I'll have / get the menu brought to you.
I had to get / have my jacket cleaned after the party.
I must go and get / have my photo taken for my new passport.
I'll get / have those copies made for you immediately.
She's getting / having her teeth fixed.
• The active pattern, meaning 'cause or order someone to do something', is get + person + to-infinitive, or have + person + infinitive without to:
I'll get the waiter to bring you the menu.
I'll have the waiter bring you the menu.
Note that have is much more common in American English; get is common in spoken British English.
• The passive pattern, meaning 'arrange for somebody else to do something', is get / have + object + past participle:
I'll have / get the menu brought to you.
I had to get / have my jacket cleaned after the party.
I must go and get / have my photo taken for my new passport.
I'll get / have those copies made for you immediately.
She's getting / having her teeth fixed.
get + -ed: active and passive
We can sometimes use get instead of be in the passive. This is usually informal:
They got punished by the Principal for making so much noise.
Lucky Paul got promoted / elected / chosen / appointed yesterday.
Poor Vassili - his dog got run over last night.
• Get meaning 'become' is also common with a particular small group of past participles:
get dressed * get married * get used to * get stuck * get lost * get caught * get burned * get involved
• The meaning of these phrases can be active:
I got dressed as quickly as I could.
• We can use some of these active phrases with an object:
I have to get the children dressed early every morning.
Don't get your family involved in the business.
They got punished by the Principal for making so much noise.
Lucky Paul got promoted / elected / chosen / appointed yesterday.
Poor Vassili - his dog got run over last night.
• Get meaning 'become' is also common with a particular small group of past participles:
get dressed * get married * get used to * get stuck * get lost * get caught * get burned * get involved
• The meaning of these phrases can be active:
I got dressed as quickly as I could.
• We can use some of these active phrases with an object:
I have to get the children dressed early every morning.
Don't get your family involved in the business.
Things that happen to you
We use have + object + past participle to describe things that happen to us, often misfortunes. The subject is the person who experiences what happened:
I've had my car stolen. (Compare: My car was stolen.)
He's had his application for citizenship turned down. (Compare: His application for citizenship has been turned down.)
My mother's had her letter published in The Times. (Compare: My mother's letter has been published in The Times.)
• In spoken English we can sometimes use get instead of have:
She's got another letter published in The Times.
• Note that sometimes only the context will identify precise meaning. Consider:
They had their fence pulled down. (= either: they employed somebody to pull it down (causative); or it was pulled down without their planning it, e.g. by vandals.)
I've had my car stolen. (Compare: My car was stolen.)
He's had his application for citizenship turned down. (Compare: His application for citizenship has been turned down.)
My mother's had her letter published in The Times. (Compare: My mother's letter has been published in The Times.)
• In spoken English we can sometimes use get instead of have:
She's got another letter published in The Times.
• Note that sometimes only the context will identify precise meaning. Consider:
They had their fence pulled down. (= either: they employed somebody to pull it down (causative); or it was pulled down without their planning it, e.g. by vandals.)
Check!
Which of thee sentences are causatives?
1. He tried to escape but got caught.
2. They were aiming to walk the entire route but got tired in the end.
3. I need to get my hair cut.
4. I'm going to have my portrait painted.
5. I had my car broken into last week.
2. They were aiming to walk the entire route but got tired in the end.
3. I need to get my hair cut.
4. I'm going to have my portrait painted.
5. I had my car broken into last week.