Rafi told Mary, “I am thinking of watching a film this weekend."
The following reports the above statement in indirect speech:
Rafi told Mary that he __________ of watching a film that weekend.
Converting Direct to Indirect Speech
The original statement is in direct speech: Rafi told Mary, “I am thinking of watching a film this weekend."
We need to convert this to indirect speech. Key changes involve:
- Reporting verb tense: 'told' is in the past tense.
- Pronoun change: 'I' changes to 'he'.
- Tense shift: The verb tense in the reported clause shifts back.
- Time expression change: 'this weekend' changes to 'that weekend'.
Applying Tense Shift Rules
When the reporting verb (like 'told') is in the past tense, the present continuous tense ('am thinking') in the direct speech shifts to the past continuous tense ('was thinking') in the indirect speech.
Applying this rule:
- Direct: "I am thinking..." (Present Continuous)
- Indirect: "...he was thinking..." (Past Continuous)
The time expression also changes from 'this weekend' to 'that weekend' to reflect the shift in time.
Final Indirect Speech Statement
Therefore, the correct indirect speech form is: Rafi told Mary that he was thinking of watching a film that weekend.
This matches the structure: Rafi told Mary that he __________ of watching a film that weekend.
The missing verb form is 'was thinking'.
Important Questions from Grammar
Parts of the following sentence are given as options. Identify the segment that contains a grammatical error.
The reason for visiting Meerut was because my mother needed to be looked after.
Select the grammatically correct sentence.
A. The Supriya is the best girl in the class.
B. Supriya is the best girl in the class.
C. Supriya is best girl in the class.
D. The Supriya is a best girl in the class.
Select the grammatically correct statement from among the given options.
A. It is a nice party. I am enjoying the party.
B. It is a party. I am enjoying an party.
C. It is party. I am enjoying a party.
D. It is the party. I am enjoying an party.
Select the most appropriate option to substitute the underlined segment in the given sentence.
Due to increased international travel, the tourism sector has grown to be a global tracker to the global economy.
The following sentence has been split into four segments. Identify the segment that contains a grammatical error.
Having known that / the train was already on the platform, / they ran fastly / to catch it.
