"Have/get + object + past participle" = arrange for someone else to do something, or suffer something happening to you. "I had my car repaired" = I got my car repaired (someone else did it). "I repaired my car" = I did it myself. "I had someone repair my car" (have + person + bare infinitive) = variant with an expressed agent.
HAVE + OBJECT + PAST PARTICIPLE (causative): expresses that the SUBJECT arranges, pays for, or commissions someone else to perform an action on the object. The subject does NOT perform the action directly. "She had her laptop repaired" (a technician repaired it). "We are having the new offices renovated" (a construction team does it). FORM: HAVE + noun/pronoun + past participle. All tenses possible: "I am having my hair cut." / "She has had her report reviewed by a colleague." GET + OBJECT + PARTICIPLE: informal equivalent. "I got my car fixed." GET = slightly more informal, more common in spoken English. ADDITIONAL USE — SUFFERING SOMETHING (NO CONTROL): the same structure can also express that something bad happened TO the subject without their arranging it. "He had his wallet stolen on the subway" (was victimized). "She got her phone broken during the presentation" (it broke involuntarily). Context (positive = arranged; negative = suffered) determines the meaning.
The chief executive had the annual report independently reviewed by an external audit firm before it was presented to the board, in order to ensure full accuracy and regulatory compliance.
We are currently having the entire IT infrastructure assessed by a specialist cybersecurity consultancy to identify any vulnerabilities that could expose the organization to operational or reputational risk.
Three members of the senior leadership team had their travel documents confiscated at the border, an incident that significantly complicated the logistics of the international delegation visit.
DIRECT ACTION (no causative): when the SUBJECT performs the action themselves, the normal active verb is used. "I repaired my car" = I fixed it myself. "She reviewed the report herself." HAVE + PERSON + BARE INFINITIVE: causative variant where the AGENT (who performs the action) is explicitly expressed. "I had a technician repair the car" = I asked/arranged for a technician to repair it. HAVE + person + bare infinitive = the agent goes between HAVE and the infinitive (without TO). "She had her assistant book the flights." GET + PERSON + TO + INFINITIVE: same but with GET, which REQUIRES TO: "I got a technician TO repair the car." DIFFERENCE: HAVE + person + bare infinitive (no "to"). GET + person + to + infinitive (with "to"). MAKE + person + bare infinitive: FORCED causative (the person had no choice). "The manager made the team work overtime."
Rather than having the translations outsourced to a third-party agency, the company decided to have its internal multilingual team handle all communications for the upcoming product launch across four markets.
The operations manager got the maintenance contractors to complete a full structural inspection of all six warehouse facilities before the peak season inventory was moved in.
The new head of legal has decided to review all pending contracts personally, rather than having them delegated to junior members of the team without sufficient oversight.
Common mistake
FREQUENT ERRORS: (1) CONFUSING HAVE + participle (causative) with HAVE + participle (present perfect): "I have repaired the car" = PRESENT PERFECT (I repaired it). "I had the car repaired" = CAUSATIVE (someone else repaired it). The word order differs: PRESENT PERFECT = HAVE + participle (no object between them). CAUSATIVE = HAVE + OBJECT + participle. (2) USING TO WITH HAVE CAUSATIVE: "I had a mechanic to repair the car" = INCORRECT. HAVE + person + bare infinitive (no "to"). GET requires TO: "I got a mechanic TO repair the car." (3) NOT KNOWING IF IT IS ARRANGEMENT OR VICTIM: "She had her bag stolen" = victimized. "She had her bag cleaned" = arranged. Context and verb type determine interpretation. (4) MAKE: "I made the car repaired" = INCORRECT. MAKE causative = MAKE + person + bare infinitive: "I made the mechanic repair it."
Trick to remember it
THE CAUSATIVE FORMULA: HAVE + [object (thing)] + [past participle]: "I had my car repaired." = Someone else did it, no agent specified. HAVE + [person] + [bare infinitive (no "to")]: "I had a mechanic repair it." = Agent specified. GET + [object] + [participle]: "I got my car repaired." = Same as HAVE, informal. GET + [person] + [to + infinitive]: "I got a mechanic to repair it." = With TO. VERIFICATION: if there is an OBJECT between HAVE/GET and the participle = causative. If HAVE is directly followed by a participle WITHOUT an object between them = present perfect.
Quick rule
HAVE + object + past participle = causative (someone else does it). HAVE + person + infinitive (no "to") = causative with agent. GET + object + participle = causative (informal). GET + person + TO + infinitive = causative with agent (GET requires TO). "I had MY CAR repaired" (causative). "I have repaired the car" (present perfect — I repaired it). Object between HAVE and participle = causative signal.
Did you know?
The causative "have something done" construction is one of the most universal structures across the world's languages, though each language forms it differently. What makes English particularly interesting is that it uses the SAME verb HAVE for two completely different functions: present perfect ("I have done") and causative ("I have something done"). This potential ambiguity disappears in real use because the two constructions have different word orders, but it is a constant source of confusion for learners. Linguists like Bernard Comrie have classified causative constructions across all world languages into three types: (1) morphological (a suffix is added to the verb), (2) lexical (a special verb like CAUSE/MAKE is used), and (3) periphrastic (an auxiliary + infinitive construction is used). English uses all three types depending on context: morphological (fell = "make fall"), lexical (let, make, have, get), and periphrastic (cause someone to do).
Exercise 1 · Pick the right one
Before the new premises can be used as a client-facing space, the company will need to _____ thoroughly by a qualified interior design firm to meet the brand standards required by the global headquarters.
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
The regional director discovered on returning from annual leave that several key client records _____ during a security incident that had occurred in her absence.
Exercise 3 · Form the word
HAVE + object + past participle = causative (someone else does it). HAVE + person + infinitive (no "to") = causative with agent. GET + object + participle = causative (informal). GET + person + TO + infinitive = causative with agent (GET requires TO). "I had MY CAR repaired" (causative). "I have repaired the car" (present perfect — I repaired it). Object between HAVE and participle = causative signal.
FREQUENT ERRORS: (1) CONFUSING HAVE + participle (causative) with HAVE + participle (present perfect): "I have repaired the car" = PRESENT PERFECT (I repaired it). "I had the car repaired" = CAUSATIVE (someone else repaired it). The word order differs: PRESENT PERFECT = HAVE + participle (no object between them). CAUSATIVE = HAVE + OBJECT + participle. (2) USING TO WITH HAVE CAUSATIVE: "I had a mechanic to repair the car" = INCORRECT. HAVE + person + bare infinitive (no "to"). GET requires TO: "I got a mechanic TO repair the car." (3) NOT KNOWING IF IT IS ARRANGEMENT OR VICTIM: "She had her bag stolen" = victimized. "She had her bag cleaned" = arranged. Context and verb type determine interpretation. (4) MAKE: "I made the car repaired" = INCORRECT. MAKE causative = MAKE + person + bare infinitive: "I made the mechanic repair it."
THE CAUSATIVE FORMULA: HAVE + [object (thing)] + [past participle]: "I had my car repaired." = Someone else did it, no agent specified. HAVE + [person] + [bare infinitive (no "to")]: "I had a mechanic repair it." = Agent specified. GET + [object] + [participle]: "I got my car repaired." = Same as HAVE, informal. GET + [person] + [to + infinitive]: "I got a mechanic to repair it." = With TO. VERIFICATION: if there is an OBJECT between HAVE/GET and the participle = causative. If HAVE is directly followed by a participle WITHOUT an object between them = present perfect.
Bryan López
Founder of SpeakUP Academy