Japanese from zero · N4 Lesson 16b
Make, let, and made to
〜させる / 〜せる (causative) ・ 〜させて くれる / あげる / もらう ・ 〜させられる ・ who did what to whom
In this lesson, you will learn to say what someone makes or lets another person do, to ask to be let do something, and to say what you were made to do yourself. At dinner at the Satos', Hiro tells why his teacher scolded him, and Grandma makes everyone eat seconds.
By the end you will be able to say
ゆみさんは ひろくんに 予習を させました。Yumi made Hiro prepare for his lessons.
おばあちゃんは みんなに たくさん 食べさせます。Grandma makes everyone eat a lot.
店長は 私に コーヒーを 作らせて くれました。The manager let me make the coffee.
料理を 手伝わせて もらえませんか。Could you let me help with the cooking?
先生に 漢字を 十回 書かせられました。The teacher made me write the kanji ten times.
The grammar in this lesson
- Make or let someone do it: 〜させる / 〜せる — The causative says someone makes or lets another person do something.
- Let me: 〜させて くれる / あげる / もらう — The causative's て-form with くれる, あげる or もらう always means 'let': someone lets you, you let someone, or you get to do it.
- Made to (and not happy about it): 〜させられる — The causative-passive says someone was made to do something they did not want to do.
- Who did what to whom: は, に and the verb ending — は marks who the sentence is about, and the verb ending says whether they acted, made someone act, or had it done to them.