Have/Get + Person + Infinitive Exercises
B2 Level
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A key distinction is formality. "Have someone do" is neutral or formal, and common in professional English: "The director had the team present their findings." "Get someone to do" is more informal and suggests that some effort or persuasion was needed: "She finally got her flatmate to clean the kitchen." In everyday English, "get someone to do" is far more common because most of our requests involve asking rather than instructing. Both patterns are tested in Cambridge B2 First use-of-English tasks, where you must choose the correct infinitive form after "have" or "get."
Quick Rule
have + person + bare infinitive (instruction) | get + person + to-infinitive (persuasion)
- 1.The boss had the intern prepare the meeting room. (instruction — workplace authority)
- 2.I got my friend to drive me to the airport. (persuasion — asking a favour)
- 3.She had the plumber check all the pipes in the house. (instruction — hiring a professional)
- 4.We couldn't get our landlord to replace the broken window. (failed persuasion — negative)
- 5.He got his parents to agree to the holiday plan. (persuasion — family negotiation)
All 20 questions
Write the complete causative structure using the person and verb provided. Remember: 'had someone DO' (authority) vs 'got someone TO DO' (persuasion).
The manager gave instructions to his assistant about the presentation. (his assistant + prepare)
She persuaded her brother to help with moving house. (her brother + help)
The teacher instructed the students about the essays. (the students + rewrite)
I finally convinced my landlord about the heating. (my landlord + fix)
The doctor gave instructions to the nurse about my blood pressure. (the nurse + take)
We eventually convinced our children about their rooms. (our children + tidy)
The CEO instructed her team about working overtime. (her team + work)
He couldn't convince his cat about the new food. (his cat + eat)
The police officer demanded the driver show documentation. (the driver + show)
She convinced her husband about going on holiday. (her husband + agree)
The director instructed the actors about the scene. (the actors + rehearse)
We convinced our neighbours about the music volume. (our neighbours + turn down)
The coach instructed the players about training. (the players + run)
I convinced my friend about lending money. (my friend + lend)
The sergeant commanded the soldiers about attention. (the soldiers + stand)
She finally convinced her parents about buying a car. (her parents + buy)
The supervisor instructed the workers about the deadline. (the workers + complete)
How did you convince the bank about the fee? (the bank + waive)
The principal demanded the students apologise. (the students + apologise)
We couldn't convince the council about the planning decision. (the council + change)
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