Choose the option that is the most appropriate conversion of the following sentence into Direct Speech. He said that the machine operates automatically but had malfunctioned that morning.
He said, "The machine operates automatically, but malfunctioned this morning."
To convert from indirect to direct speech, we restore the speaker's exact words inside quotation marks and reverse the usual backshift of tense and time.
The reported clause 'the machine operates automatically' is a general or habitual truth, so in direct speech it stays in the present simple: 'operates'.
The reported past perfect 'had malfunctioned' corresponds to a simple past in the original words, giving 'malfunctioned'.
The time reference 'that morning' in indirect speech comes from an original 'this morning', so it must change back to 'this morning'.
Combining these, the direct speech is: 'The machine operates automatically, but malfunctioned this morning.'
Options 1 and 2 wrongly change 'operates' to 'operated', losing the general present truth.
Option 4 wrongly uses 'is operating', and option 2 keeps 'operated', so only option 3 restores the tenses and time word correctly.
The correct direct speech is He said, "The machine operates automatically, but malfunctioned this morning."
Similar Questions
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Important Questions from Direct and Indirect Speech
Direction : Choose the option that is in the indirect form of the sentence.
He said to his boss, "I had completed my task before the end of the day."
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Rahul said, "What a pleasant surprise!"
Directions: Select the correct indirect form of the given sentence.
The lion asked the lioness, "Where will you hide yourself, until I return?”
Select the correct indirect narration of the given sentence.
Sushant said to the elderly lady, “Madam, you can take my place and stand here in the queue.”
