Causatives: Have/Get Something Done

Form, meanings, tense patterns, and common mistakes Intermediate

1) What It Means

We use have something done and get something done when we arrange for another person to do a job or service for us (haircuts, repairs, cleaning). This is called the causative form.

Quick Overview
Form	Structure	Meaning	Register	Example
have something done	have + object + past participle	You arrange for someone to do it	Neutral / formal	We had our house painted last summer.
get something done	get + object + past participle	Same meaning as have	More informal / conversational	I’ll get my phone fixed tomorrow.

Services / arrangements: I had my hair cut on Friday. (A hairdresser did it.)
Repairs / improvements: They got their roof repaired after the storm.
Unfortunate events: She had her wallet stolen on the bus.

2) Two Meanings of Get Something Done

A. Causative (arrange a service)

Same as have something done: get + object + past participle.

We got the kitchen painted. (= we arranged for painters.)

B. Completion/Finish (not causative)

get something done can also mean finish or complete a task or goal. Focus = completion.

To complete a task: “I need to get this report done by Friday.”

To achieve a goal: “We finally got the project done ahead of schedule.”

To finish a piece of work: “He spent the whole weekend getting his taxes done.”

Compare:
• We got the kitchen painted. (Causative: someone else did the painting.)
• We got the work done. (Completion: the work was finished.)

3) Form & Word Order

have/get + object + past participle (same participle as passive: cut, cleaned, repaired, installed, delivered, stolen, etc.)

Subject + have/get (tense) + object + past participle
We are having the kitchen renovated this month.

4) Tense Patterns

Tense	Pattern	Example
Present Simple	have/get + obj + past participle	I have my nails done every month.
Past Simple	had/got + obj + past participle	We had the windows replaced last year.
Present Continuous	am/is/are having/getting + obj + past participle	They are getting their car serviced today.
Future (will)	will have/get + obj + past participle	She will have the report printed by noon.
Present Perfect	have/has had/gotten + obj + past participle	He has had the locks changed.
Modals	can/should/must + have/get + obj + past participle	You should get your eyes checked.

5) Style & Nuance

Have is slightly more formal/neutral; get sounds more casual and is common in speech.
With unfortunate events, we usually prefer have: They had their car stolen.
AmE vs BrE: In American English, perfect forms often use gotten (has gotten his phone fixed). British English usually uses got.

6) Useful Participles by Topic

Services / Repairs	Home / Office	Unfortunate Events
repaired, fixed, serviced, checked	cleaned, painted, installed, delivered	stolen, broken, damaged, lost
cut, styled, dyed (hair)	replaced, upgraded, assembled	scratched, smashed, hacked (accounts)

7) “Have/Get” vs. Doing It Yourself

🚫 I cut my hair. (= I did it myself.)
✅ I had my hair cut. (= someone did it for me.)

8) Common Mistakes

✖️ I had cut my hair. (suggests you did it yourself) → ✔️ I had my hair cut.
✖️ He had his car to repair. → ✔️ He had his car repaired.
✖️ We got our roof to be fixed. → ✔️ We got our roof fixed.
Word order: keep the object before the past participle.
✔️ She had the documents printed. ✖️ She had printed the documents (means she printed them herself).

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