Causative verbs

Causative verbs are used to cause or influence people to do things. In English, these are verbs like "make," "let," "have," and "get," when used in a sentence like "get Billy to eat dinner."

The most common causative verbs in Chinese are:

• 让 (ràng)
• 叫 (jiào)
• 请 (qǐng)
• 使 (shǐ)

Structure

Make sure to take note of the different meanings and levels of formality. For example, 使 (shǐ) and 让 (ràng), when used as causative verbs, basically mean the same thing (to make), but 使 (shǐ) is used in more formal or written Chinese, while 让 (ràng) is used more in spoken Chinese.

Subj. + [Causative Verb] + Person + Predicate

The predicate part of the pattern can be a verb or an adjective.

"Make" vs. "Let"

It's worth noting that 让 is the most common causative verb in spoken Mandarin and is often translated into English as either "make" or "let." It may seem strange to speakers of English that these two very different words are the same word in Chinese. "Make" is kind of like forcing, and "let" is kind of like allowing, right? But in Chinese, the understood concept generally makes clear how willing the object of the causative verb is. It's just something that takes time to get used to.

Examples

• 你 为什么 不 让 我 去 ？Nǐ wèishénme bù ràng wǒ qù?Why won't you let me go?
• 这 部 电影 让 人 很 感动 。Zhè bù diànyǐng ràng rén hěn gǎndòng.This movie really moves people.
• 那个 老人 让 我 想到 了 我 爷爷 。Nàge lǎorén ràng wǒ xiǎng dào le wǒ yéye.That old man mades me think of my grandpa.
• 他 不 听话 ，你 叫 我 怎么办 ？Tā bù tīnghuà, nǐ jiào wǒ zěnmebàn?He won't listen. What would you have me do?
• 他 偷偷 约 别的 女孩 ，你 叫 我 怎么 想 ？Tā tōutōu yuē bié de nǚhái, nǐ jiào wǒ zěnme xiǎng?He secretly asked other girls out. Tell me what I'm supposed to think.
• 你 儿子 在 学校 的 表现 叫 老师 很 头疼 。Nǐ érzi zài xuéxiào de biǎoxiàn jiào lǎoshī hěn tóuténg.Your son's behavior at school gives the teacher a lot of headaches.
• 我 想 请 你 帮 我 一 个 忙 。Wǒ xiǎng qǐng nǐ bāng wǒ yī gè máng.I want to ask you to do me a favor.
• 能 不 能 请 你 明天 照顾 一下 我 的 狗 ？Néng bu néng qǐng nǐ míngtiān zhàogu yīxià wǒ de gǒu?Can I ask you to look after my dog tomorrow?
• 他 的 演讲 使 听众 们 非常 激动 。Tā de yǎnjiǎng shǐ tīngzhòng men fēicháng jīdòng.His speech made the audience very excited.
• 经济 危机 使 很多 公司 倒闭 了 ，也 使 很多 人 失去 了 工作 。Jīngjì wēijī shǐ hěn duō gōngsī dǎobì le, yě shǐ hěn duō rén shīqù le gōngzuò.The financial crisis caused lot of companies to go out of business, and many people lost their jobs because of this.

Obviously, not every causative verb maps perfectly to an English causative verb. You can see from these examples than in some case the natural English translation doesn't even need a causative verb.

See also

• Passive voice

Sources and further reading

Videos

• Yoyo Chinese: The word "rang"

Books

• Chinese: An Essential Grammar, Second Edition (pp. 170-2) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 2, Part 2 (pp. 120-1) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy
• 卓越汉语－公司实战篇 (pp. 19) 卓越汉语－公司实战篇 →buy