Verb Causative Form
Expression of 'making' or 'letting' someone do an action.
What is the Causative Form?
The Causative Form is used to express that someone makes or lets another person do something. In Japanese, this single form covers both coercive (forcing) and permissive (allowing) meanings depending on the context. The sentence structure varies depending on whether the verb is intransitive or transitive.
Conjugation Rules
To form the causative, we change the verb ending to -せる or -させる.
Change the -u vowel ending to -a and add -せる. For verbs ending in -u (like 買う), use -wa (買わせる).
| Dictionary Form | Causative Form |
|---|---|
く / ぐ / す / つ / ぬ / ぶ / む / る → あ段 + せる | |
待つまつ | 待たせるまたせる |
帰るかえる | 帰らせるかえらせる |
飲むのむ | 飲ませるのませる |
死ぬしぬ | 死なせるしなせる |
遊ぶあそぶ | 遊ばせるあそばせる |
書くかく | 書かせるかかせる |
泳ぐおよぐ | 泳がせるおよがせる |
話すはなす | 話させるはなさせる |
う → わせる | |
買うかう | 買わせるかわせる |
Conjugation Examples
- I will make my younger brother buy bread.
弟にパンを買わせます。
- The teacher made the students wait in the hallway.
先生は学生を廊下で待たせました。
- I'll let my friend return home early.
友達を早く帰らせてあげます。
Intransitive Verbs
When using an intransitive verb (like 行く, 来る, 遊ぶ), the person being 'made/let' to do the action is marked with the particle を.[Subject] は [Agent] を [Verb-Causative]
Examples
- The mother made the child go to the supermarket.
お母さんは子供をスーパーへ行かせました。
- I let the dog run in the park.
公園で犬を走らせました。
- The teacher let the students play outside.
先生は学生を外で遊ばせました。
Transitive Verbs
When using a transitive verb (like 買う, 食べる, 読む), the person doing the action is marked with the particle に to avoid having two を in the sentence.[Subject] は [Agent] に [Object] を [Verb-Causative]
Examples
- The manager made the staff write a report.
部長は部下に報告書を書かせました。
- I let my younger sister use my computer.
妹に私のパソコンを使わせました。
- My mother made me drink milk every morning.
母は毎朝私に牛乳を飲ませます。
Asking for Permission
The construction ~させてください is a very common and polite way to ask for permission to do something yourself.
Examples
- Please let me introduce myself.
自己紹介をさせてください。
- Since I'm not feeling well, please let me go home early today.
気分が悪いので、今日は早く帰らせてください。
- Please let me think about it for a while.
少しの間、考えさせてください。
Causative-Passive Form
The Causative-Passive Form (使役受身形 - しえきうけみけい) is used when you are forced to do something against your will. It is formed by combining the causative and passive forms.[Subject] は [Agent] に [Verb-Causative-Passive]
Examples
- I was made to wait for an hour by my friend.
友達に一時間待たされました。
- I was forced to sing at the karaoke.
カラオケで歌わされました。
- I was made to clean the room by my mother.
母に部屋を掃除させられました。