Direct & Indirect Speech

QUESTION 1

Change the following sentence into indirect speech: The teacher said, 'If you had studied harder, you would have passed the examination.'

A The teacher said that if they studied harder, they would pass the examination.
D The teacher said that if they would have studied harder, they would have passed the examination.
C The teacher said that if they had studied harder, they would pass the examination.
B The teacher said that if they had studied harder, they would have passed the examination.

Answer: The third conditional sentence (unreal past condition) does not change its tense structure when converted to indirect speech.

QUESTION 2

Convert to indirect speech: He said, 'I must leave at once, for my father is waiting.'

A He said that he had to leave at once, as his father was waiting.
D He said he had to be leaving at once, as his father waited.
B He said that he must have to leave at once, for his father was waiting.
C He said that he must leave at once, because his father is waiting.

Answer: 'Must' indicating compulsion or necessity is changed to 'had to'. The present continuous tense 'is waiting' changes to the past continuous 'was waiting'.

QUESTION 3

She said, 'What a dreadful idea!' Convert this to indirect speech.

D She told that the idea was dreadful.
B She exclaimed that it was a very dreadful idea.
C She exclaimed that the idea is dreadful.
A She exclaimed that what a dreadful idea it was.

Answer: Exclamatory sentences starting with 'What a...' are converted into assertive sentences using 'very' or 'great' before the adjective.

QUESTION 4

The captain said to his soldiers, 'Let us not be disheartened by this single defeat.' Choose the correct indirect form.

C The captain commanded his soldiers that let them not be disheartened by that single defeat.
A The captain suggested to his soldiers that they should not be disheartened by that single defeat.
D The captain said to his soldiers that they must not be disheartened by that single defeat.
B The captain told his soldiers to not be disheartened by this single defeat.

Answer: A proposal or suggestion starting with 'Let us' is reported using reporting verbs like 'suggested' or 'proposed', followed by 'that they should'.

QUESTION 5

Change to indirect speech: 'Would that I were rich!' cried the beggar.

D The beggar wished to be rich.
B The beggar wished that he had been rich.
C The beggar said that he would be rich.
A The beggar cried that he was not rich.

Answer: Optative sentences expressing a strong, unrealizable wish (subjunctive mood like 'were') are reported using 'wished' and the past perfect tense.

QUESTION 6

He said, 'I was doing my homework when the lights went out.' What is the indirect speech?

B He said that he had been doing his homework when the lights went out.
C He said that he had been doing his homework when the lights had gone out.
A He said that he was doing his homework when the lights had gone out.
D He said that he did his homework when the lights had gone out.

Answer: In a complex sentence, past continuous ('was doing') changes to past perfect continuous ('had been doing'), and simple past ('went out') changes to past perfect ('had gone out').

QUESTION 7

The boy said, 'Let me go out to play now.' Convert this sentence.

B The boy requested that he might be allowed to go out to play then.
C The boy said to let him go out to play now.
A The boy told that he should be allowed to go out to play then.
D The boy asked if he can go out to play then.

Answer: When 'Let' is used to seek permission, the indirect speech uses 'requested' and a clause like 'that he might be allowed to'.

QUESTION 8

The philosopher said, 'We are all sinners; we ought to repent.'

D The philosopher said we were all sinners and we should repent.
C The philosopher said that they were all sinners and they ought to repent.
B The philosopher said that we are all sinners and we ought to repent.
A The philosopher said that we were all sinners and we had to repent.

Answer: Universal truths ('we are all sinners') and modal verbs expressing moral duty ('ought to') do not change tense in indirect speech.

QUESTION 9

The candidate said, 'If I am elected, I will lower taxes and create jobs.'

A The candidate said that if he were elected, he would lower taxes and create jobs.
B The candidate said that if he is elected, he will lower taxes and create jobs.
C The candidate said that if he was elected, he would have lowered taxes and created jobs.
D The candidate said that if he had been elected, he would lower taxes and create jobs.

Answer: This is a Type 1 conditional. 'am' changes to 'was' or 'were' (subjunctive 'were' is more formal), and 'will' changes to 'would'.

QUESTION 10

She asked, 'Aren't you ashamed of yourself?' Select the correct indirect form.

B She asked whether I was not ashamed of myself.
D She asked me why I wasn't ashamed of myself.
C She asked me that wasn't I ashamed of myself.
A She asked me if I wasn't ashamed of myself.

Answer: A negative yes/no question is converted using 'if' or 'whether' followed by the subject and the verb in a positive structure ('I was not' instead of 'wasn't I').

‹ 1 / 30›