Making something happen: 使, 令, 让, 叫, 使得, 导致, 引起
Causing feelings and results, asking people to act, and the written verbs of cause and effect.
Part of the free B2 Chinese course (about HSK 5). Examples are in Simplified characters, with pinyin only for some new or hard words; press the speaker to hear one with your device's Chinese voice.
Two families
- 使, 令, 让, 叫 + someone/something + verb or adjective: "make someone (feel/do) …".
- 使得, 导致, 引起: cause-and-effect verbs of writing, linking a cause to a result.
| Word | Pinyin | Use | Register |
|---|---|---|---|
| 让 | ràng | make, let, allow | everyday |
| 叫 | jiào | make, tell (someone to do) | spoken |
| 使 | shǐ | make, cause (a state) | written |
| 令 | lìng | make (feel), mostly 令人 + emotion | written |
| 使得 | shǐde | which made, so that | written |
| 导致 | dǎozhì | lead to (usually a bad result) | written |
| 引起 | yǐnqǐ | give rise to, arouse, spark | neutral |
让 and 叫: people
让 is the everyday causative, and also means "let, allow". 叫 is spoken, for telling someone to do something.
- 妈妈不让我晚上一个人出去。My mum doesn't let me go out alone at night.
- 老板叫我明天早点来。The boss told me to come in early tomorrow.
使 and 令: states and feelings
使 is the written "make": the subject is often an event, the result a state. 令 is mostly fixed as 令人 + emotion: 令人失望, 令人难忘, 令人感动.
- 这个好消息使大家都很兴奋。This good news made everyone very excited.
- 他的表现令人失望。His performance was disappointing.
Neither 使 nor 令 means "allow". For permission, use 让.
使得, 导致, 引起: cause and effect
使得 follows a cause clause and introduces its result. 导致 "leads to" a result, usually an unwelcome one. 引起 "gives rise to" a reaction: 引起注意, 引起讨论, 引起关注. 导致 and 引起 can take a plain noun object; 使, 令 and 让 can't.
- 油价上涨，使得运输成本大幅增加。Oil prices rose, which pushed transport costs up sharply.
- 睡眠不足会导致注意力下降。Lack of sleep can lead to poorer concentration.
- 这篇文章引起了广泛的讨论。This article sparked widespread discussion.
Common mistakes
妈妈不使我玩游戏。→ 妈妈不让我玩游戏。使 causes; it doesn't permit.他的话导致了大家的注意。→ 引起了大家的注意。Attention is "aroused" (引起), not "led to".我使得他去买菜。→ 我让他去买菜。To get a person to do something, use 让 or 叫.他的话使了大家。→ 他的话使大家很生气。使 needs a result after the person, and takes no 了.- 新政策叫很多人失业了。 in a report is too colloquial: 新政策导致很多人失业。
Practice
- 这件事_____人难以相信。// This is hard to believe.Options: 令 · 导致 · 引起
Show the answer
令 — 令人 + feeling or reaction. 导致 and 引起 take a result noun, not 人 + verb.
- 他的发言_____了大家的注意。// His speech caught everyone's attention.Options: 引起 · 使 · 令
Show the answer
引起 — 引起注意 is the set collocation. 使 and 令 need a person + verb or adjective after them.
- 长期熬夜容易_____免疫力下降。// Staying up late for a long time easily leads to weaker immunity.Options: 导致 · 叫 · 受到
Show the answer
导致 — 导致: lead to an (unwelcome) result.
- 爸爸不_____我开他的车。// Dad won't let me drive his car.Options: 让 · 使 · 令
Show the answer
让 — Only 让 means 'let, allow'.