Choose the option that is the most appropriate conversion of the following sentence into Direct Speech. He told her that the documents had already been signed before she had called.
He said to her, "The documents had already been signed before you called."
When converting to direct speech, told her becomes said to her, the conjunction that is removed, and the pronoun she (the listener) becomes you.
The reported clause had already been signed describes an action completed before another past action (her call), so in the direct form the earlier action stays in the past perfect, had already been signed, and the later action is in the simple past, called.
Direct form: He said to her, "The documents had already been signed before you called." Versions with have been signed before you had called or before you have called mix tenses illogically, and the one with were signed and no listener loses both the sequence and the addressee.
Hence, He said to her, "The documents had already been signed before you called.".
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Important Questions from Direct and Indirect Speech
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