让 + Object + Verb
Reach for 让 when you want to say someone or something causes, lets, or makes another party do an action. It covers both 'let' (permission, 让他进来) and 'make' (causation, 这件事让我很难过). It's the default causative in spoken Chinese — friendlier and more common than 使, which is reserved for written or formal contexts.
Structure
[SUBJECT] 让 [OBJECT] [VERB]
[SUBJECT] ràng [OBJECT] [VERB]
How to Think About It
让 hands off the action. The subject doesn't do the verb — the object does. 我让他走 isn't 'I walked,' it's 'I caused him to walk.' That handoff is why the verb after 让 belongs to the object, not the subject, and why a second subject can't sneak in before that verb.
Examples
妈妈让我早点睡。
Māma ràng wǒ zǎodiǎn shuì.
Mom told me to go to bed early.
这首歌让我想起了小时候。
Zhè shǒu gē ràng wǒ xiǎngqǐle xiǎo shíhou.
This song reminds me of my childhood.
老板不让员工迟到。
Lǎobǎn bú ràng yuángōng chídào.
The boss doesn't let employees arrive late.
Common Mistake
Learners insert a subject pronoun before the second verb, mirroring English 'I let him so he leaves.' Chinese drops it — the object after 让 is already doing the verb.
妈妈让我我做作业。
妈妈让我做作业。
Don't Confuse With
叫 + Object + Verb
叫 leans toward telling/ordering someone; 让 leans toward permitting or causing. 老师叫我站起来 feels like an order, 老师让我站起来 feels neutral.
使 + Object + Adj
使 is the formal/written cousin. Use 让 in speech; switch to 使 in essays and news.
把 + Object + Verb
把 puts the object first because the speaker does the verb to it. 让 hands the verb to the object — totally different action flow.
Practice
Fill in the blank: 老师___我们安静一下。
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让
Fill in the blank: 这个消息让她很___。 (happy)
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高兴
Arrange: 让 / 哭了 / 这部 / 我 / 电影
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这部电影让我哭了。
Translate to Chinese: Dad won't let me watch TV.
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爸爸不让我看电视。
Write a sentence using 让 to describe something or someone that makes you feel a certain way.
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我的猫让我觉得很放松。
Hear It in Real Episodes
This pattern appears in 1 Fluentide episode: