Rewrite the sentence in Indirect Speech. He said, 'My brother is writing letters.'
He said that his brother was writing letters
This question requires converting a sentence from Direct Speech to Indirect Speech. Let's break down the process:
Understanding Direct and Indirect Speech
Direct Speech reports the exact words spoken, usually enclosed in quotation marks. Example: He said, 'My brother is writing letters.'
Indirect Speech reports what was said without quoting directly. It involves specific changes in tense, pronouns, and reporting verbs.
Steps for Conversion
- Identify the Reporting Verb: The reporting verb is 'said'. Since it's in the past tense, the tense of the verb in the reported clause will usually change.
- Remove Quotation Marks and Comma: The comma after 'said' and the quotation marks around the reported speech are removed.
- Add Conjunction: The conjunction 'that' is added after the reporting verb 'said'.
- Change Pronouns: The pronoun 'My' refers to the speaker ('He'). In indirect speech, it changes to the corresponding possessive pronoun 'his'.
- Change Tense: The tense in the reported speech needs to change according to the backshift rule. The Present Continuous tense ('is writing') changes to the Past Continuous tense ('was writing') when the reporting verb is in the past tense.
- Check Other Elements: Time and place expressions might also change, but none are present in this specific sentence that require changing.
Applying the Changes
Original Sentence (Direct Speech): He said, 'My brother is writing letters.'
- Reporting Verb: said
- Reported Clause: 'My brother is writing letters.'
- Pronoun 'My' changes to 'his'.
- Tense 'is writing' (Present Continuous) changes to 'was writing' (Past Continuous).
- Add 'that' after 'said'.
Resulting Sentence (Indirect Speech): He said that his brother was writing letters.
Evaluating the Options
- Option 1: He said that his brother was writing letters - This correctly applies all the necessary changes (conjunction 'that', pronoun 'his', tense 'was writing').
- Option 2: He said that my brother was writing letters - Incorrect. The pronoun 'My' was not changed to 'his'.
- Option 3: He said that his brother has been writing a - Incorrect. The tense change is wrong ('has been writing' is Present Perfect Continuous, not Past Continuous) and the sentence is incomplete ('a' instead of 'letters').
- Option 4: He said that his brother had been writing a - Incorrect. The tense change is wrong ('had been writing' is Past Perfect Continuous, not Past Continuous) and the sentence is incomplete ('a' instead of 'letters').
Therefore, the correct way to rewrite the sentence in Indirect Speech is Option 1.
Similar Questions
Out of the four alternatives suggested, select the one which best expresses the given sentence in indirect speech.
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Important Questions from Direct and Indirect Speech
Select the correct direct form of the given sentence.
I asked my brother if he had visited his friend who was in the hospital.
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He said to his boss, "I had completed my task before the end of the day."
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Identify the direction narration of the given sentence.
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?”
