Causative verbs and pronouns (fazer, deixar)

Causative Verbs and Accusative Pronouns

When using causative verbs like fazer (to make) and deixar (to let) alongside an infinitive, the person being made or allowed to do the action is represented by an object pronoun.

The pronoun you choose depends on the second verb. If the infinitive is intransitive (it does not take a direct object), the person performing the action is treated as a direct object. Use the accusative pronouns: o, a, os, as.

When attaching these pronouns to verbs ending in -z (like faz and fez), drop the -z, add an l- to the pronoun (-lo, -la, -los, -las), and add an accent to the verb: fá-lo (makes him) and fê-lo (made him).

The emperor let her leave.
O imperador deixou-a sair.
Whenever the duke arrives, the nobility makes him wait.
Sempre que o duque chega, a nobreza fá-lo esperar.
At the banquet, the king made them dance.
No banquete, o rei fê-los dançar.
The advisor made him return to the castle.
O conselheiro fê-lo regressar ao castelo.

Transitive Verbs and Dative Pronouns

If the infinitive is transitive (it has its own direct object, such as "drink the wine" or "organize the banquet"), a valency shift occurs. Portuguese grammar avoids having two direct objects in the same clause.

The object of the infinitive claims the direct object slot, and the person performing the action gets "bumped" to the indirect object position. Therefore, use the dative pronouns: lhe (him/her) or lhes (them).

The emperor made him drink the wine.
O imperador fez-lhe beber o vinho.
The queen did not let him kiss the prince.
A rainha não lhe deixou beijar o príncipe.
We made him organize the banquet.
Fizemos-lhe organizar o banquete.
We let them drink the wine at the banquet.
Deixámos-lhes beber o vinho no banquete.