In the following question, a sentence has been given in the direct/indirect speech. Out of the four alternatives suggested, select the one which best expresses the same sentence in indirect/direct speech. Rani said to Reena, "Did you know he was not coming to my birthday?"
Rani asked Reema if she knew he had not been going to her birthday.
The reporting verb "said to" changes to "asked" since the direct sentence is a question, and "Did you know" converts to "if/whether she knew" while retaining the yes/no question structure.
The embedded clause "was not coming" is in the past continuous tense; since the reporting verb is in the past tense, it must be backshifted to the past perfect continuous tense, becoming "had not been going".
"My birthday" also changes to "her birthday" since the narrator is now reporting the event in third person.
Only the option that correctly backshifts both the reporting verb and the continuous tense clause, using "had not been going", is grammatically accurate.
Similar Questions
Change the sentence from direct speech to indirect speech.
He said, "Subhas Chandra Bose was born into wealth and privilage in a large Bengali family in Orissa."
Important Questions from Direct and Indirect Speech
Select the option that expresses the given sentence in indirect speech.
“How beautiful she is!” said Betty.
Select the correct direct form of the given sentence.
I told my parents not to worry about me.
Direction: Select the correct indirect form of the given sentence.
He said to me, “Your father is waiting for you at the reception.”
Select the correct indirect form of the given sentence.
He said to Manoj, “I celebrated my birthday two days ago.”
Select the most appropriate indirect form of the given sentence.
Jayesh said to Diwakar, "You can top the class if you want to."
