Grammar: Causative Verbs - Have, Make, Get, Let

Causative Verbs: Have, Make, Get, Let

The word ‘causative’ has the meaning of ‘somebody causes somebody to do something'. Some other verbs that are used to show causation are: let, help, cause, persuade, etc. Causative verbs in a sentence determine the forms of other verbs of that sentence.

Look at this picture. In this picture, the student is doing her homework - she is the doer or agent. The teacher is asking her to do her homework, i.e. the teacher causes the student to do her homework - the teacher is subject her. This picture can be interpreted in the following ways using causing verbs:


Make = force somebody to do something
The teacher made her student do the homework. (active form)
('Make' is not used in passive form)

Get = convince somebody to do something
The teacher got her student to do the homework. (active form)
The teacher got the homework done. (passive form)

Have = want (give sb responsibility) somebody to do something
The teacher had her student do the homework. (active form)
The teacher had the homework done. (passive form)

Let = permit/allow somebody to do something
The teacher let her student do the homework. (active form)
('Let' is not used in passive form)

Now, observe these rules and examples:

Exercise - CV1
Look at the picture of a washerman and a donkey, and fill in the blank space with the appropriate option given.

1. The washerman makes the donkey .......... the clothes. (carry, carried, to carry)
2. The washerman gets the donkey .............. the clothes. (carry, carried, to carry)
3. The washerman gets the clothes .............. every day. (carry, carried, to carry)
4. The washerman has the donkey ............. the clothes. (carry, carried, to carry)
5. The washerman has the clothes ............ every day. (carry, carried, to carry)
6. The washerman lets the donkey ............ the clothes. (carry, carried, to carry)
7. The washerman .............. the donkey carry the clothes. (make, gets, has)
8. The washerman ............... the donkey to carry the clothes. (makes, gets, has)
9. The washerman .............. the clothes carried every morning. (makes, gets, have)

Exercise - CV2
Rewrite the following sentences selecting the correct answer from the brackets:

1. The engineer got the workmen …… (built, build, to build) the bridge.        
   
2. We made the gardener …….. out the grass. (to cut, cut, cutting).     
   
3. My father got me ……… the homework. (doing, to do, do) 
   
4. I made my mother …….. new clothes. (buy, bought, to buy)
5. The teacher got Shyam …….. a glass of water. (bring, to bring, bringing, brings)
   
6. She didn't want to sing a song. I asked her she had to. I made her ……… a song. (to sing, sings, sing, sang)            
   
7. She is very cruel. She always makes her children ……. the hard work. (to do, do, does)     
   
8. My shoes are dirty. I will get the cobbler ……. them. (to polish, polish, to be polished, polished)
9. He made his sons …….. (work, to work, worked) hard.         
   
10. He got his wife …….. (call, called, to call) his sons. 
    
11. Rita got her dress ……. (washed, to wash, wash, washing).  
    
12. He made us …….. (sang, to sing, sing, singing) a song yesterday.   
    
13. He got his servant …… (clean/cleaned/to clean/cleans) the rooms.  
    
14. My daughter made me ……… (bought/to buy/buy) an expensive sari for her.
15. He is very lazy. He always …….. (make, makes, gets) his mother to clean his room.          
    
16. The teacher made the students …….. the exercise. (to do, does, do) 

Essay Writing: Our Culture, our Identity

Essay Topic: Out Culture, our Identity

People have their own customs, beliefs, art, way of life and social organizations. They are the backbone of civilization and identity. Nowadays, due to western influence we are neglecting our own culture and following the western culture. This leads us to nowhere. Write an essay on "Our Culture, our Identity" in about 300 words.

Our Culture, our Identity

Introduction: Whatever activities we follow in our everyday life for long, again and again, are our cultures. The culture is some kind of repeated behavior made by the particular community. Later on, those cultures are attached to the community so deeply that the community is identified by those cultures. People have their own cultures according to the place they live, and as per the religion they follow.

Body 1: (Nepalese cultures-food, clothes, greeting, etiquette, language) Nepalese people have distinct cultures in food, clothes, way of greeting, etiquette. We generally eat cooked plain rice with lentil gravy called daal and a mixed vegetable called tihun. Some eat paste of grain floor called dindo instead of rice. Some have chapatti. Daura and suruwal is our national costume for the male. For the female saari/ dhoti and blouse are common. Different castes have their own dress codes too. While greeting, we use the word 'Namaste' or 'Namaskar' and join the two open palms together and raise up to the chest. Various communities have their own way of greeting using specific words and physical gestures. We have our own language with a written script.

Body 2: (Rituals and traditions) During the lifetime, we observe different types of rituals and traditions. They vary according to the castes and religions. Some of the prominent events Nepalese people celebrate are - name-giving ceremony after the birth, weaning ceremony, wearing holy thread ceremony/ bratabandh, chhewar, wedding ceremony, religious rituals, different festivals celebration, funeral function, after-death function, etc.

Body 3: (Cultural interaction) Everything is changeable in this world. Even the culture is also changeable. We have to keep practicing our good cultures. Those cultures which are bad and impractical should be either reformed or avoided. Due to the influence of western cultures, Nepalese people are observing some of the trendy western cultures, such as celebrating birthdays and western festivals. Moreover, they have given up their own typical festivals and rituals.

Conclusion: Human beings have their own distinct cultures which are the symbols of their identity. Even an animal or a plant has its own features by which it is identified. If the plant or the animal loses its typical feature, it may lose its identity. In the same way, we have our own cultures which have been inherited from our prior generations. Those cultures are attached to us as our identity. If we leave those cultures, we lose our typical identity. Hence 'Our culture is our identity'.