Causative sentences without an agent are known as passive causatives. A passive causative sentence can interchangeably have any of the following structures.

Agent

Have

Object

Participle

Somebody

• caused
• causes
• is going to cause

something

• to have happened
• to happen

or

Agent

Get

Object

Participle

Somebody

• caused
• causes
• is going to cause

something

• to have happened
• to happen

1. She asked a beautician to paint her fingernails yesterday.

She

had

her fingernails

painted yesterday

or

She

got

her fingernails

painted yesterday

2.  He regularly asks the boy from the mobile automotive washing franchise in the underground parking garage at work to wash his car.

He

has

his car

regularly washed at work.

or

He

gets

his car

regularly washed at work.

3. I am going to ask my mother to brush my hair tomorrow.

I

am going to have

my hair

brushed tomorrow.

or

I

am going to get

my hair

brushed tomorrow.

Summarizing, Get and Have are verbs used in causative structures; a sentence in which the performer or doer of an action is not the subject of the sentence, but somebody else.

As with any other tense or voice, causative structures can have interrogative and negative forms.

Examples:
Did you ask a valet to park your car?

Did

you

have

your car

parked?

or

Did

you

get

your car

parked?

Sorry! I never ask a valet to park my car! I rather drive myself.

I

never have

my car

parked

or

I

never get

my car

parked.

What are Karen and Patrick going to do in order to feed their dog while they are away?

How

are

they

going to get

their dog

fed while they are away?

 

Finally, the negative form of a causative structure has this pattern:

Agent

Negation of causative

Object

Participle

Somebody

• Not causing
• Not forcing
• Not allowing

something

to happen

For its part, the interrogative form of a causative structure can have any of the following configurations.

Wh Word

Auxiliary

Agent

Have / Get

Object

Participle

Optional

Has

She

Had/Got

her homework

checked yet?