让 + Object + Verb/Adjective
Reach for 让 when one thing CAUSES or LETS another thing do something or feel something — 'X makes / lets Y do (or feel) Z.' The subject pushes the cause, 让 introduces who or what gets affected, and the verb or adjective says the result. Daily-use causative: 'this movie made me cry,' 'mom let me go,' 'the news made people nervous.'
Structure
[SUBJECT] 让 [OBJECT] [VERB / ADJ]
ràng [OBJECT] [VERB / ADJ]
How to Think About It
让 hands the action off. The subject is the trigger; the object is the one who actually does the action or holds the feeling. Two flavors live inside the same word: 'make' (causes the result) and 'let' (permits it). Context decides which — '老板让我加班' (the boss made me work late OR let me work late, usually 'made' here). The verb/adjective slot describes what happens TO/IN the object, not what the subject does.
Examples
这首歌让我很开心。
Zhè shǒu gē ràng wǒ hěn kāixīn.
This song makes me really happy.
妈妈让我去买面包。
Māma ràng wǒ qù mǎi miànbāo.
Mom told me to go buy bread.
这件事让大家很紧张。
Zhè jiàn shì ràng dàjiā hěn jǐnzhāng.
This matter made everyone really tense.
这部电影让我很感动。
Zhè bù diànyǐng ràng wǒ hěn gǎndòng.
This movie moved me a lot.
妈妈不让我看手机。
Māma bù ràng wǒ kàn shǒujī.
My mom won't let me look at my phone.
他的话让大家都笑了。
Tā de huà ràng dàjiā dōu xiào le.
What he said made everyone laugh.
战争让很多人难过。
Zhànzhēng ràng hěn duō rén nánguò.
War makes many people sad.
这个消息让妈妈很担心。
Zhège xiāoxi ràng māma hěn dānxīn.
This news makes mom really worried.
老师让我们读课文。
Common Mistake
Learners put the object on the wrong side, treating 让 like a sandwich filler. The object always sits BETWEEN 让 and the verb. Also, learners use 让 with action verbs where 使 or 把 would be cleaner — 让 is best when there's a human or living object reacting.
这个电影让哭了我。
这个电影让我哭了。
Don't Confuse With
使 + Object + Verb/Adjective
More formal, written-register cousin. 使 prefers abstract subjects in essays ('使人感动'). 让 is everyday speech.
把 + Object + Verb
把 = active spotlight: subject does something TO the object. 让 = subject CAUSES the object to do something. '我把他叫起来' (I called him up) vs. '我让他起来' (I told/let him get up).
叫 + Object + Verb
Often interchangeable with 让 but leans 'order / tell to do.' '妈妈叫我回家' = mom told me to go home. 让 sounds slightly softer and broader.
使 + Person + Verb/Adjective
Same causative function, more formal. Use 让 in speech, 使 in essays and news. 使 doesn't carry the 'allow/permit' meaning.
叫 + Person + Verb
Slightly more like 'tell/order someone to do X.' 让 leans more neutral — could be permission, could be causing feeling.
Practice
老师 ___ 我们写一篇文章。
Show answer
让
这个消息让他很 ___。
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高兴
Put in order: [让 / 妈妈 / 早点 / 我 / 回家]
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妈妈让我早点回家。
Translate to Chinese: 'This movie made me cry.'
Show answer
这部电影让我哭了。
Write one sentence about something that made you feel a certain way, using 让.
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Example answer: 这本书让我对中国历史很感兴趣。 (This book got me really interested in Chinese history.)
Fill in: 这件事____我很难过。
Hear It in Real Episodes
This pattern appears in 15 Fluentide episodes:
Related Grammar Patterns
Acquire by listening
Hear 让 + Object + Verb/Adjective in real Chinese, not in a textbook.
Fluentide picks the next news episode at your level, so this pattern shows up again and again in real context. The transcript marks it, the audio drills it. Free to start, no card.