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Question

Select the option that expresses the given sentence in direct speech.

The traveller asked the owner if he could stay in that tavern. The peasant replied that he could.

This question was previously asked in
PYST : General Awareness - SSC Stenographer 2024 (Tier-I) (10-Dec-2024) (Shift 2)
The correct answer is

The traveller said, “Can I stay in this tavern?” The peasant replied, “You can.”

The question asks to convert the given indirect speech into direct speech. Let's analyze each part separately:

Part 1: The traveller asked the owner if he could stay in that tavern.

This part translates to the traveller's question. The indirect question "if he could stay" in direct speech becomes a question using "Can I?". The pronoun "he" changes to "I" because the traveller is speaking about himself. The "that tavern" becomes "this tavern" as the speaker is referring to the tavern he's currently in.

Part 2: The peasant replied that he could.

The peasant's reply "that he could" is simply a statement of permission. In direct speech, this becomes "You can." The pronoun shifts from "he" to "you" because the peasant is addressing the traveller.

Therefore, the correct direct speech representation is:

The traveller said, “Can I stay in this tavern?” The peasant replied, “You can.”

Options 1, 2, and 4 are incorrect because they either use inappropriate question phrasing or incorrect pronouns in either the question or the reply. Option 3 correctly uses "Can I" for the question, and "You can" for the reply.

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Similar Questions

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Important Questions from Direct and Indirect Speech

  1. Directions: Select the correct indirect form of the given sentence.

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  4. Directions: Select the correct indirect form of the given sentence.

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