Direct & Indirect Speech

QUESTION 41

He said, 'Were I the Prime Minister, I would eradicate poverty.'

D He said that if he were the Prime Minister, he would eradicate poverty.
B He said that if he was the Prime Minister, he would eradicate poverty.
A He said that if he had been the Prime Minister, he would have eradicated poverty.
C He wished he were the Prime Minister to eradicate poverty.

Answer: This is an inverted second conditional (unreal present). Its structure remains unchanged in indirect speech as it expresses a hypothetical situation.

QUESTION 42

The old woman said, 'Alas! My only son, who was my sole support, is dead.'

C The old woman exclaimed with sorrow that her only son, who was her sole support, had been dead.
A The old woman exclaimed with sorrow that her only son, who was her sole support, was dead.
D The old woman told with sorrow that her only son, who was her sole support, is dead.
B The old woman exclaimed with sorrow that her only son, who had been her sole support, was dead.

Answer: 'Alas' is reported as 'exclaimed with sorrow'. The main clause 'is dead' changes to 'was dead'. The subordinate clause 'was my sole support' refers to a state prior to the reported speech's past, so it changes to past perfect 'had been her sole support'.

QUESTION 43

He said, 'I must go, but I would rather stay.'

D He said that he had to go, but he would have rather stayed.
B He said that he must go, but he would rather stay.
A He said that he had to go, but he would rather have stayed.
C He said that he had to go, but he would rather stay.

Answer: 'Must' for obligation changes to 'had to'. The expression 'would rather', which indicates preference, does not change in indirect speech.

QUESTION 44

The boy said, 'Thank you, sir, for your invaluable advice.'

D The boy respectfully thanked the sir for his invaluable advice.
B The boy thanked the sir for his invaluable advice.
A The boy said thank you to the sir for his invaluable advice.
C The boy told the sir that thank you for your invaluable advice.

Answer: Sentences containing 'Thank you' are reported by using the verb 'thanked'. The word 'sir' implies respect, so adding 'respectfully' makes the conversion more accurate.

QUESTION 45

'Could you please tell me where the nearest ATM is?' asked the tourist.

C The tourist requested me could I tell him where the nearest ATM is.
D The tourist asked me to please tell him where the nearest ATM was.
A The tourist asked me where was the nearest ATM.
B The tourist politely asked me where the nearest ATM was.

Answer: A polite request in the form of a question ('Could you please...') is reported using 'politely asked'. The indirect question has the subject-verb order ('ATM was') and the tense changes.

QUESTION 46

He said, 'A man is known by the company he keeps. This is a timeless truth.'

D He said that a man was known by the company he kept and added that that is a timeless truth.
B He said that a man is known by the company he keeps and added that that was a timeless truth.
A He said that a man was known by the company he kept and added that that was a timeless truth.
C He said that a man is known by the company he keeps and added that that is a timeless truth.

Answer: The first part is a proverb or universal truth, so its tense does not change. The second part is a simple statement where 'this' becomes 'that' and 'is' becomes 'was'.

QUESTION 47

The boss said, 'It is time you began working on the new project.'

B The boss said that it was time I had begun working on the new project.
A The boss said that it was time I should begin working on the new project.
D The boss said that it is time I began working on the new project.
C The boss said that it was time I began working on the new project.

Answer: In the structure 'It is time + subject + simple past', the tense of the verb following the subject ('began') does not change. Only 'is' changes to 'was'.

QUESTION 48

'What do you want?' she said to him. 'I have nothing to give you now.'

C She asked him what he wanted and said that she has nothing to give him then.
D She asked him what he wants and added that she had nothing to give him then.
B She asked him what did he want and added that she had nothing to give him now.
A She asked him what he wanted and added that she had nothing to give him then.

Answer: The question is reported with past tense ('wanted') and assertive word order. The statement is reported by changing present perfect ('have') to past perfect ('had'), but since 'have' here means possession, it becomes simple past 'had'. 'Now' becomes 'then'.

QUESTION 49

The children cried, 'Let us make a snowman before the sun comes out.'

A The children told to make a snowman before the sun came out.
C The children exclaimed that let us make a snowman before the sun comes out.
B The children suggested making a snowman before the sun came out.
D The children suggested that they should make a snowman before the sun would come out.

Answer: 'Let us' indicating a suggestion can be reported with 'suggested' followed by a gerund ('making'). The tense in the 'before' clause changes from present ('comes') to past ('came').

QUESTION 50

He said, 'So help me, Heaven! I will never steal again.'

B He asked Heaven to help him so that he will never steal again.
D He requested Heaven's help and swore that he would never steal again.
A He called upon Heaven to witness his resolve that he would never steal again.
C He told Heaven to help him and resolved that he would never steal again.

Answer: The expression 'So help me, Heaven!' is a form of oath. It is idiomatically reported as 'called upon Heaven to witness his resolve'. 'Will' changes to 'would'.

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