Easy Causative Transformation Exercises

"Have something done" means you arrange for another person — usually a professional — to do a job or service for you. You do not do it yourself. For example, "I had my hair cut" means a hairdresser cut my hair — I did not cut it myself. The structure is: subject + have + object + past participle. You can also use "get" instead of "have" with the same meaning: "I got my hair cut." This pattern is used whenever you talk about services such as repairs, cleaning, medical checks, or beauty treatments. It is one of the first grammar structures taught at B1 level.

Follow three simple steps. First, find the person who receives the service — this person becomes the new subject. Second, choose "have" or "get" and put it in the correct tense. Third, write the object followed by the past participle. For example: "A mechanic repaired my car" becomes "I had my car repaired." The mechanic disappears from the sentence because the focus is now on you and the service you received. If the original sentence is in the present tense, keep "have" in the present: "A cleaner cleans our office" becomes "We have our office cleaned." Practise with common services to build confidence.

Always use the past participle, not the past tense. For regular verbs, the past tense and past participle look the same (repaired, cleaned, painted), so learners often confuse them. The difference becomes clear with irregular verbs: "I had my car stolen" uses the past participle "stolen" — not the past tense "stole." Important past participles to learn include: cut (not cutted), broken (not broke), done (not did), and written (not wrote). If you are unsure about the correct form, check the third column of an irregular verb list. This is a key skill for Cambridge B1 Preliminary and B2 First exams.