Chapter 4 — The Causative Form

The causative form expresses making someone do something or letting someone do something. These two meanings — coercion and permission — are both carried by the same conjugation, which means context and particles do the work of disambiguation. This chapter teaches the formation, the particle logic that distinguishes "make" from "let," and the critical expression させてください, which is one of the most practical phrases in polite Japanese.

The causative is deeply tied to Japanese social structure. It naturally appears in hierarchical relationships — parents and children, teachers and students, bosses and subordinates — where one person has the authority to direct another's actions or the power to grant permission. Understanding the causative is essential for comprehending how Japanese encodes authority and social position directly into verb morphology.

4.1 Formation of the Causative Form

五段 Verbs

For 五段 verbs, change the final う-row sound to the corresponding あ-row sound, then add せる.

As with the passive and the ない-form, verbs ending in う use わ (not あ) before the suffix: 買う becomes 買わせる.

一段 Verbs

For 一段 verbs, drop the final る and add させる.

Irregular Verbs

させる is extremely common. Every する compound verb has a causative: べんきょうさせる ("make/let study"), 説明させる ("make/let explain"), そうじさせる ("make/let clean").

Causative Verbs Conjugate as 一段

Like potential and passive verbs, all causative verbs conjugate as 一段, regardless of the original verb class.

4.2 "Make" vs "Let" — Particles Disambiguate

The causative form can mean either "make someone do" (coercion, compulsion) or "let someone do" (permission, allowance). Both meanings use the same verb form. The distinction is carried partly by particles and partly by context.

The Particle System

The person who is made to do or allowed to do the action (the "causee") can be marked with either を or に. The choice depends on whether the original verb is transitive or intransitive, and on the nuance of coercion versus permission.

With intransitive verbs (verbs that do not take a direct object):

The causee is marked with を for coercion and に for permission.

先生は　学生を　立たせた。（たたせた） "The teacher made the students stand up." (coercion)

母は　子どもに　あそばせた。 "The mother let the children play." (permission)

部長は　田中さんを　帰らせた。（ぶちょう） "The department head made Tanaka go home." (coercion — perhaps as punishment)

部長は　田中さんに　帰らせた。 "The department head let Tanaka go home." (permission — perhaps Tanaka wanted to leave early)

With transitive verbs (verbs that take a direct object):

When the original verb already takes an object marked with を, the causee must be marked with に to avoid having two を in the same clause. In this case, the distinction between "make" and "let" depends entirely on context.

母は　子どもに　やさいを　食べさせた。 "The mother made/let the child eat vegetables."

Is the mother forcing the reluctant child to eat vegetables, or is she generously allowing the child to eat? Context determines it. If the child hates vegetables and the mother insists, it is "made." If the child wants vegetables and the mother provides them, it is "let."

先生は　学生に　本を　読ませた。 "The teacher made/let the students read a book."

社長は　ぶかに　しりょうを　作らせた。（しゃちょう、ぶか、しりょう） "The president had a subordinate prepare the materials."

In this last example, note the translation "had someone do" — this is a common way to render the causative in English when the relationship is hierarchical and the instruction is expected rather than cruel. A boss telling a subordinate to prepare materials is neither cruel coercion nor generous permission — it is a normal directive. The causative covers this middle ground naturally.

Summary Table

4.3 Causative in Hierarchical Contexts

The causative naturally appears in contexts involving a power differential. The person who causes the action is always in a position of authority, control, or seniority relative to the person performing it.

Parent → Child:

母は　子どもに　ミルクを　飲ませた。 "The mother had the child drink milk."

父は　子どもを　はやく　ねさせた。 "The father made the child go to bed early."

Teacher → Student:

先生は　学生に　さくぶんを　書かせた。（さくぶん） "The teacher had the students write essays."

コーチは　せんしゅを　毎日　はしらせた。 "The coach made the athletes run every day."

Boss → Subordinate:

部長は　わたしに　この　しごとを　させた。 "The section chief had me do this work."

社長は　しゃいんを　ざんぎょうさせた。（しゃいん、ざんぎょう） "The company president made the employees work overtime."

Context determining "make" vs "let":

先生は　びょうきの　学生に　帰らせた。 "The teacher let the sick student go home."

母は　子どもに　すきな　ものを　えらばせた。（えらぶ） "The mother let the child choose what they liked."

Note how the same grammatical structure can express kindness (letting a sick student go home) or authority (making employees work overtime). The causative itself is neutral — it simply encodes the fact that one person's action was directed by another. Whether that direction is benevolent, neutral, or oppressive comes from the context.

4.4 させてください — Polite Request for Permission

One of the most immediately useful expressions built on the causative is させてください — "please let me do." This is the standard polite way to request permission to perform an action.

Formation: 使役形 の て形 ＋ ください

Since all causative verbs are 一段, the て-form is always formed by dropping る and adding て: させる → させて, 書かせる → 書かせて, 食べさせる → 食べさせて.

説明させてください。 "Please let me explain."

少し　考えさせてください。（かんがえる） "Please let me think about it for a moment."

この　しごとを　わたしに　やらせてください。 "Please let me do this work."

自己紹介させてください。（じこしょうかい） "Please allow me to introduce myself."

もう　いちど　言わせてください。 "Please let me say it one more time."

This expression is polite without being overly formal. It is appropriate in business settings, with teachers, with strangers — any situation where you need to politely ask for permission. It literally says "please cause me to do [this]," which in Japanese pragmatics is a humble way of requesting: you are asking the listener to grant you the authority to act.

In more formal situations, させていただけませんか or させていただきたいのですが are used, but these involve keigo constructions that will be covered in later chapters. For now, させてください is the appropriate level of politeness.

The negative request — asking someone not to make you do something — is less formulaic and varies by situation, but a basic pattern is:

させないでください。 "Please don't make me do it."

4.5 Recognition Notes

The causative form is recognizable by its characteristic sound patterns. For 五段 verbs, look for ～あせる (書かせる, 読ませる, 走らせる). For 一段 verbs, look for ～させる (食べさせる, 見させる). The する → させる pattern is also distinctive.

When parsing a causative sentence, identify three elements:

1. The causer — the person who makes/lets someone do something (usually the topic, marked with は)
2. The causee — the person who is made to do or allowed to do the action (marked with を or に)
3. The action — what the causee is made/let to do

母は　子どもに　やさいを　食べさせた。 Causer: 母 / Causee: 子ども / Action: やさいを食べる

The causative often appears in combination with other grammar you already know. For example:

Causative + ている (ongoing/habitual):

母は　子どもに　毎日　ミルクを　飲ませている。 "The mother has the child drink milk every day."

Causative + たい (want to make/let):

子どもに　すきな　ことを　させたい。 "I want to let the children do what they like."

Causative + なければならない (must make/let):

学生に　この　本を　読ませなければならない。 "I must have the students read this book."

These combinations work because the causative verb, being 一段, conjugates into all the forms you already know.

Reading Passage 2 — 部活の　きびしい　先輩

Read the following passage about club activities in a Japanese high school, where the causative form appears naturally in hierarchical relationships.

わたしは　高校一年生の　とき、やきゅう部に　入りました。やきゅう部は　とても　きびしかったです。

先輩たちは　わたしたち　一年生に　いろいろな　ことを　させました。まず、毎朝　六時に　グラウンドに　来させました。三年生が　れんしゅうする　前に、わたしたちに　グラウンドの　そうじを　させました。

キャプテンの　山本先輩は　とくに　きびしい　人でした。わたしたちを　毎日　三十分　走らせました。声が　小さいと、もう　一度　あいさつを　させました。「もっと　大きい　声を　出せ」と　よく　言われました。

でも、先輩は　ときどき　やさしい　ところも　ありました。れんしゅうの　後、じょうずに　できた　一年生には　自分の　ジュースを　飲ませてくれました。うまく　できなくても、がんばった　人には　「よくやった」と　言って、やすませてくれました。

今　思うと、先輩が　きびしく　させてくれた　おかげで、わたしは　つよく　なれたと　思います。

Translation

When I was a first-year in high school, I joined the baseball club. The baseball club was very strict.

The senior students made us first-years do many things. First, they made us come to the field at six every morning. Before the third-years practiced, they had us clean the field.

The captain, Yamamoto-senpai, was an especially strict person. He made us run for thirty minutes every day. If our voices were too quiet, he would make us do the greeting again. He often told us, "Speak up louder."

However, the senpai also had kind moments sometimes. After practice, he would let first-years who did well drink his juice. Even if someone did not do well, if they tried hard, he would say "good job" and let them rest.

Looking back now, I think that thanks to senpai pushing us hard, I was able to become strong.

Notes on the passage

先輩（せんぱい）— "senior, upperclassman." In Japanese club culture, the senpai-kouhai hierarchy is central.

グラウンド — "field, grounds" (from English "ground"). Used for sports fields.

キャプテン — "captain" (of a team).

声を　出す（こえをだす）— "to speak up, to project one's voice." A fixed expression.

〜てくれました — remember from Stage 1 that てくれる expresses that someone did something for the speaker's benefit. 飲ませてくれました combines the causative (let drink) with this giving structure.

4.6 Vocabulary List