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Question

Select the option that expresses the given sentence in direct voice. The young boy asked his mother how he could fix his broken toy.

This question was previously asked in
SSC CHSL 2025 Tier 1 Question Paper (21-Nov-2025) (Shift 1)
The correct answer is

The young boy asked his mother, "How can I fix my broken toy?"

The reported sentence is 'The young boy asked his mother how he could fix his broken toy', which must be turned back into direct speech.

Converting indirect to direct reverses the usual rules: the backshifted tenses move one step forward and the actual words are placed inside quotation marks.

The reporting verb 'asked' introduces a question, so the quoted matter must be framed as a question ending in a question mark, with the interrogative word order 'How can I ...'.

The backshifted modal 'could' returns to its present form 'can', reflecting what the boy really said.

The pronouns revert to the original speaker's viewpoint: 'he' becomes 'I' and 'his' becomes 'my'.

The listener is named in the report, so 'asked his mother' is retained before the quotation. Option A drops the listener, option B keeps 'he'/'his' and wrongly uses 'said', and option C keeps the backshifted 'could' with 'he'.

So the correct direct form is The young boy asked his mother, "How can I fix my broken toy?"

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Similar Questions

  1. Choose the correct indirect narration of the following statement from the given alternatives:

    She said, "I am not going to forgive Robin as he took my pencils without my permission."

  2. Choose the option that is the most appropriate conversion of the following sentence into Direct Speech.

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Important Questions from Direct and Indirect Speech

  1. Select the correct direct form of the given sentence.

    I asked my brother if he had visited his friend who was in the hospital.

  2. 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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    The manager said to the staff, “Please work with dedication. You will be paid overtime whenever you work late.”

  4. Identify the direction narration of the given sentence.

    Rahul said, "What a pleasant surprise!"

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

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