Are 終{お}わる and 済{す}ませる synonyms?

Question

I know that they both mean "finish". But I wonder if there are situations or contexts where you can use one but not the other.

Answer 1

The main difference between 終わる and 済ませる is that 終わる is an intransitive verb (meaning that the speaker has no part in the verb taking place or not) and 済ませる is a transitive verb (meaning the opposite; the speaker has control over the verb taking place or not.