La costruzione causativa: fare e lasciare + infinito
La costruzione causativa: fare e lasciare + infinito means “"to have/make someone do something" — and "to let someone do it"”. The causative construction lets you say that you cause or allow someone else to do something, using fare (make/have) or lasciare (let) directly followed by an infinitive — no che. Formation: fare + infinito = far fare qualcosa a qualcuno · lasciare + infinito = permettere — i pronomi si attaccano a fare/lasciare: lo faccio riparare · glielo faccio fare — «a» introduce chi compie l'azione: faccio lavare la macchina a Marco
"to have/make someone do something" — and "to let someone do it"
C1Formation
fare + infinito = far fare qualcosa a qualcuno · lasciare + infinito = permettere — i pronomi si attaccano a fare/lasciare: lo faccio riparare · glielo faccio fare — «a» introduce chi compie l'azione: faccio lavare la macchina a Marco
Explanation
The causative construction lets you say that you cause or allow someone else to do something, using fare (make/have) or lasciare (let) directly followed by an infinitive — no che. Faccio riparare la macchina = I have the car repaired (someone else does it). Mia madre mi lascia uscire = my mother lets me go out. Two rules make it C1. (1) Pronoun placement: object pronouns attach to fare/lasciare, not to the infinitive — lo faccio riparare (I have it repaired), and combined pronouns pile up: glielo faccio fare (I have him/her do it). (2) Marking the doer: if the infinitive already has its own object, the person made to act is introduced by a: faccio lavare la macchina a Marco (I have Marco wash the car). Note the fixed idioms far vedere (to show) and far sapere (to let know).
Examples
Note
The pronouns never go on the infinitive: it's lo faccio fare, never *faccio farlo. The double-pronoun form glielo faccio fare is the summit of the Italian clitic system — combining causative fare with a fused pronoun. far vedere and far sapere are worth memorizing as ready-made units.
FAQ
La costruzione causativa: fare e lasciare + infinito — what does it mean and how is it used?
"to have/make someone do something" — and "to let someone do it". The causative construction lets you say that you cause or allow someone else to do something, using fare (make/have) or lasciare (let) directly followed by an infinitive — no che. Faccio riparare la macchina = I have the car repaired (someone else does it). Mia madre mi lascia uscire = my mother lets me go out. Two rules make it C1. (1) Pronoun placement: object pronouns attach to fare/lasciare, not to the infinitive — lo faccio riparare (I have it repaired), and combined pronouns pile up: glielo faccio fare (I have him/her do it). (2) Marking the doer: if the infinitive already has its own object, the person made to act is introduced by a: faccio lavare la macchina a Marco (I have Marco wash the car). Note the fixed idioms far vedere (to show) and far sapere (to let know).
La costruzione causativa: fare e lasciare + infinito — how do you form it?
fare + infinito = far fare qualcosa a qualcuno · lasciare + infinito = permettere — i pronomi si attaccano a fare/lasciare: lo faccio riparare · glielo faccio fare — «a» introduce chi compie l'azione: faccio lavare la macchina a Marco
La costruzione causativa: fare e lasciare + infinito — any usage notes?
The pronouns never go on the infinitive: it's lo faccio fare, never *faccio farlo. The double-pronoun form glielo faccio fare is the summit of the Italian clitic system — combining causative fare with a fused pronoun. far vedere and far sapere are worth memorizing as ready-made units.