Hello, I have a doubt in the following sentence that I can’t figure it out.
早速使わせていただきました。
I used it immediately.
If I am not mistaken the causative form (-saseru) is used when you “allow” or “influence” is someone’s actions. So, in the previous sentence the literal translation would be like: I allowed myself to use it?
And in the previous context is there a difference if I use 使わせて or 使って?
Literally, it’s more like “I got you to let me use it”.
Where does the sentence come from specifically?
Since the sentence uses いただく, I would say it’s “I was allowed to use (it) immediately”.
Yes, the original sentence is in keigo and emphasizes the aspect of being “permitted” to do something. A non-keigo version still relying on permission would’ve simply been:
早速使わせてもらいました。
or without the causative form:
早速使いました。
or the simple non-ます form:
早速使った。
The literal translation of 使わせていただきました is “I received the favor of being allowed to use it.” The literal translation of 使っていただきました is “I received the favor of using the item.”
So yes, there is a difference in meaning. The first one is a ultra-polite way of saying that someone let you use it. The second one is an ultra-polite version of -てもらう, meaning that you got someone else to use it as a favor to you.
The sentence appeared in Wanikani as an example to learn the word 早速. The “I used it immediately” translation is the one provided by Wanikani. It confused me a bit that in the translation there is no trace of the (-saseru) and sounded more like 早速使った.
The English translation is a natural one. If you’re talking to your boss in English, you would not say “I humbly received the honor of being allowed to use this” or any other literal version that might be possible to imagine.
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