B2 · grammar

Causative Have Exercises (B2) — Free

Causative have: have something done and have someone do something

We use have + object + past participle when someone else does a job for us, usually a service we arrange or pay for: I had my hair cut (a hairdresser cut it). Only have changes for tense; the object and the past participle stay the same: I'm having my car repaired, She has her eyes tested every year, We've had the windows cleaned. The word order matters: 'I had my car washed' means someone washed it for me, but 'I had washed my car' is the past perfect and means I did it myself. The same structure can describe something bad that happens to us: He had his phone stolen. To say who does the job, use have + person + base form: I'll have my assistant send you the documents. A common mistake is saying 'I cut my hair' when a hairdresser did it; in English that means you did it yourself. In informal English, get works the same way (I got my hair cut), but in these exercises use have.