This article examines the basic semantics, structural conditions, and development of putatives in Old Chinese. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) putatives in Old Chinese are not merely to express the meaning of "taking for," but often come with external behaviors. (2) Putatives could be derived from the causatives. On the one hand, putatives and causatives have the same form and share the common core meaning. On the other hand, the derivation from being causative to being putative is also traceable. (3) Putatives are variants of causatives; therefore the use of the former declined following the decadence of the use of the latter.