Cambridge Grammar of English Hardback with cd-rom a comprehensive Guide

FUNCTIONS OF PSEUDO-PASSIVES WITH HAVE

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The have-pseudo-passive most typically enables a person affected by an action or

event to be made the grammatical subject, thereby making that person the starting

point for the message:

They

had their keys stolen.

He

had his window smashed.

Other alternatives make different participants the theme of the sentence:

Someone

stole their keys.

Their keys

were/got stolen.

The meaning may be causative or non-causative:

I don’t mind paying to go to the dentist or to 

have my eyes checked.

(causative: I make it happen)

My friend round the corner recently 

had his video stolen.

(non-causative: it was not his intention or aim)

In the case of some verbs which take an object plus prepositional complement, the

have

-pseudo-passive compensates for the lack of a be-passive and enables the

affected participant to become the theme:

I

’ve 

had some ideas suggested to me, but I need time to think.

(or: Some ideas have been suggested to me …) 

(I’ve been suggested some ideas …)

We

’ll 

have that explained to us all over again at the next meeting, I’ll bet.

(or: That will be explained to us all over again …)

(We’ll be explained that all over again …)