Master the Japanese Causative Form (〜させる) | JLPT N3 Study Guide

Welcome, student! Today, we are mastering one of the most powerful and expressive structures in intermediate Japanese: the Causative Form (使役形 - shiekikei).使役形

At the N3 level, you must understand how to express that you are making someone do something (coercion) or letting someone do something (permission).

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1. How to Conjugate: The Mechanics

Before we look at sentences, let’s master the verb transformations.

Group 1 (U-Verbs)

Change the final ~u vowel sound to its ~a counterpart, and add せる (seru).

• 書く (kaku / to write) $\rightarrow$ 書かせる (kakaseru)書
• 話す (hanasu / to speak) $\rightarrow$ 話させる (hanasaseru)話
• 買う (kau / to buy) $\rightarrow$ 買わせる (kawaseru) [Note: ~u becomes ~wa]買

Group 2 (Ru-Verbs)

Drop the final 〜る (ru) and add させる (saseru).

• 食べる (taberu / to eat) $\rightarrow$ 食べさせる (tabesaseru)食
• 見る (miru / to see) $\rightarrow$ 見させる (misaseru)見

Group 3 (Irregular Verbs)

• する (suru / to do) $\rightarrow$ させる (saseru)
• 来る (kuru / to come) $\rightarrow$ 来させる (kosaseru)来

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2. The Particle Rules (The N3 Trap!)

The biggest hurdle for N3 students is choosing the correct particle for the "actor" (the person being made/allowed to do the action). The rule depends entirely on whether the verb is intransitive or transitive.

Pattern A: With Intransitive Verbs (No direct object)

When the verb does not take a direct object, the actor is marked with を (wo).

$$\text{[Instigator]} \text{ は } \mathbf{[\text{Actor}]} \ \mathbf{\underline{を}} \ \text{[Intransitive Causative Verb]}$$

• Example:
  先生は学生を走らせた。
  Sensei wa gakusei wo hashiraseta.
  The teacher made the students run.先生学走

Pattern B: With Transitive Verbs (Has a direct object)

When the verb already has a direct object marked by を, the actor must be marked with に (ni) to avoid "double-を" clashing.

$$\text{[Instigator]} \text{ は } \mathbf{[\text{Actor}]} \ \mathbf{\underline{に}} \ \text{[Object]} \ \mathbf{\text{を}} \ \text{[Transitive Causative Verb]}$$

• Example:
  お母さんは子供に野菜を食べさせた。
  Okaasan wa kodomo ni yasai wo tabesaseta.
  The mother made the child eat vegetables.母子供野菜食

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3. Nuance: "Make" vs. "Let"

The causative form is dual-natured. How do you know if it means "force" (make) or "allow" (let)? Context is key, but here are two rules of thumb:

1. Hierarchy: If a superior orders a subordinate, it usually means "make."
2. Requesting Permission (~させてください): This is a crucial N3 conversational pattern meaning "Please let me do [action]."
   • 質問させてください。
     Shitsumon sasete kudasai.
     Please let me ask a question. (Highly polite)質問
   質問

The Emotional Causative

When paired with feeling verbs (like 怒る/to get angry, 喜ぶ/to rejoice, びっくりする/to be surprised), the causative means "to make someone feel [emotion]."怒喜

• 彼女をがっかりさせないでください。
  Kanojo wo gakkari sasenaide kudasai.
  Please don't disappoint her (make her feel disappointed).彼女

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Quick Practice Challenge

Translate the following sentence using the correct particles:

"My boss made me write the report." (Boss: 上司 joushi, Report: レポート)上司

Answer:
上司は私にレポートを書かせました。
(Since "write" is transitive, the actor "me" takes に!)上司私書