Have is a common causative verb.
Instead of doing something ourselves, we "have" someone else do it
instead. It has the following form:
The verb"to have" + object + past
participle. For example:
- I had my jacket cleaned yesterday.
- Did you have your computer fixed?
Sometimes we use have as
a causative verb when we intend to perform the action ourselves. For example:
- When will the report be ready? I'll do it by tomorrow morning.
- When will the report be ready? I'll have
it done by tomorrow morning.
By using the causative the
second sentence takes attention away from the doer of the action, and gives
more attention to the action being done. It sounds polite and professional.
Get
Get is often used instead
of have. For example:
- I got my computer fixed - I had my computer fixed. These two sentences mean
the same thing.
- I got my jacket cleane. - I had my jacket cleaned. These two sentences mean
the same thing.
Causative verbs are often used
with negative experiences. In these situations it's more common to use have.
For example:
- I had my wallet stolen. (I didn't actually cause my wallet to be stolen -
someone stole my wallet from me)
- She had her window smashed.
Cause and effect relationships are constructed using the following formula.
subject + verb + so + adjective adverb + that + subject + verb
He was so hungrythat he ate the entire pizza. The hill was sosteepthat Mario couldn’t climb it. John needed money sobadlythat he sold his baseball card collection. The children are playing sointentlythat they don’t notice it’s raining. That fire is sohotthat it could easily burn you if you get too close.
Intensive modifiers are commonly added to provide extra emphasis. Study the following rules for using intensive modifiers with plural count and non-count nouns.
subject + verb + so +many few+ plural count noun + that + subject + verb
Eric had so manypuppiesthat he gave some away to friends. My aunt’s health food store had so fewcustomersthat she had to close it.
subject + verb + so + much little+ non-count noun + that + subject + verb
She put somuch sugar in her coffee that she couldn’t drink it. Jason spent (u)so(/u) little time on the project that it wasn’t ready for the meeting. Other forms which are commonly used are such a and such that.
subject + verb + such + a + adjective + singular count noun + that. . .
Ricky had such abad attitudethat he was expelled from school. Charlotte was such anintelligent student that she was offered a valuable scholarship.
subject + verb such + adjective + plural count noun + that + subject + verb
Tommy has such outstandingskillsthat he could play professional baseball. plural count noun The referees made suchbadcallsthat the fans were very angry. plural count noun She had such tarnishedsilverthat she was embarrassed to use it for the reunion. non-count noun The burning building had such thicksmokethat the firemen had difficulty seeing. non-count noun