Are "The dolphin had its head stuck in a plastic bag" and "The dolphin got its head stuck in a plastic bag" the same?

Question

[According to the dictionary][2]

to have: 18 not used in progressive tenses [+ object] a : to cause (something) to be in a specified state or condition

He had dinner ready by the time she came back.

It's hard to think when she has the radio on so loud.

He had the computer working again very quickly.

Please have your assignment ready/done/finished/completed by tomorrow.

— also have got

She's got the radio on so loud.

Have you got your assignment ready? [=is your assignment ready?]

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[to get][3]

[+ object] : to cause (someone or something) to be in a specified position or condition

He got his feet wet when he stepped in a puddle.

He got his nose broken in a fight. [=his nose was broken in a fight]

I told you not to get yourself dirty.

You nearly got us both killed!

I need to get [=have] my hair cut.

She finally got her office organized.

He promised to get the work done quickly. [=to do the work quickly]

When you're making a measurement be careful to get it right. [=to do it correctly]

Let me get this straight [=let me be sure that I understand this correctly]: are you saying that you won't help us?

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are they the same?

Are "he got his feet wet" and "he had his feet wet" the same?

Are "I told you not to get yourself dirty." and "I told you not to have yourself dirty." the same?

Are "He got dinner ready by the time she came back." and "He had dinner ready by the time she came back." the same?

Are "He got the computer working again very quickly." and "He had the computer working again very quickly." the same?

Also In British English "have got" means "have"

So, "she has the radio on so loud." and "she has got the radio on so loud." are the same?

But what about the past tenses?

For example, are "she had the radio on so loud." and "she had got the radio on so loud." are the same?

Are "The dolphin had its head stuck in a plastic bag" and "The dolphin got its head stuck in a plastic bag" the same?

Answer 1

In general "The X had Y" describes a state of things, saying noting about how it came to be. But "The X got Y" in constructions such as the above, implies that X's own action caused the state. In many cases there is little or no effective difference in meaning between the two. In some cases there is.

The dolphin had its head stuck in a plastic bag

The above simply saws that the dolphin's head was in the bag. It says nothing about how that happened, perhaps some human put the bag there, although that is not likely.

The dolphin got its head stuck in a plastic bag

This implies that it was the dolphin's own actions that caused its head to be stuck, although it gives no details. That is the only difference in meaning. "got" is also a touch more informal.

In short, the meanings are similar, but not quite the same. Since it is unlikely in this case that the bag got on the dolphin's head other than through its own actions, the difference is very minor and hypothetical.