Direct And Indirect Speech — Part 2 MCQs with Explanations

She asked him why he did not go that day.

He said, "Hurrah! India has won the Sahara Cup"

Direct: "Did the sun rise in the East?" - The little girl said to her mother. Indirect: The reporting verb "said" changes to "asked" because it's a question. The tense of the reporting verb changes from present ("says") to past ("asked"). The question itself undergoes no changes in tense. Option A ("said that the sun rose in the East"), Option C ("said if the sun rises in the East"), and Option D ("asked if the sun is in the East") are incorrect because they do not correctly transform the direct speech to indirect speech according to the rules of tense and reporting verb usage.

The man emphatically refused to confers guilt.

Nita said to her servant, "Bring me a cup of tea."

My cousin said that her room-mate snored throughout the night.

She begged me not to go away.

She told her friend that she knew where everyone was.

He asked her if she was coming to the party.

My friend asked me if my father had returned from Calcutta.

He exclaimed that it was a very beautiful scene.

Gavaskar congratulated Azhar, saying that he had done well.

He prayed that God would grant peace to the departed soul.

Mary told Robert that they would see him if he might come.

The spectators applauded Ravi, saying that he had played well.

The sage said that God helps those who help themselves.

He wondered where he would be that time the following year.

He said that he had seen a book there.

He asked me where the post office was.

He told that he had often told him not to waste his time.

Rajesh said that he had bought a car the previous day.

He asked me what time the offices closed.

He said that the mice would play when the cat was away.

He said that he would have to go the following week.

Rajan strongly wished that he had been a child again.

1. Understanding the sentence in direct speech: The original sentence is: "I clean my teeth twice a day." Here, "clean" is in the present simple tense , which is used for habitual actions or routines. 2. Identifying the reporting verb: The reporting verb is "said", which is in the past tense . In indirect speech, the tense of the reporting verb influences whether we backshift (change) the tense in the reported clause. 3. Rules for changing tenses in indirect speech: Normally, if the reporting verb is in the past tense, we backshift the tense of the reported verb (e.g., present → past). However, there are exceptions . If the reported statement expresses a universal truth, fact, or a habitual action that is still true, we keep the tense as it is. 4. Applying the rule here: The statement "I clean my teeth twice a day" describes a habitual action that is still true for the speaker at the time of reporting. Therefore, we do not need to change the verb "clean" to "cleaned". 5. Converting to indirect speech: Remove the quotation marks. Change "I" to "he" (as the speaker is referred to in third person). Keep "clean" in present tense but adjust for third-person singular → "cleans". The sentence becomes: He said that he cleans his teeth twice a day. 6. Checking other options: Option A ("cleaned") → Incorrect, because it unnecessarily changes the tense. Option C ("used to clean") → Incorrect, because it implies the habit is no longer true. Option D ("is used to cleaning") → Incorrect, because it changes the meaning to showing familiarity with the action, not reporting the statement directly. Final Answer: Option B is correct because it follows the indirect speech rule for habitual actions that remain true.

The employer told the workman that he could not pay him higher wages.

Pinki asked Gaurav if he would help her in her work just then.

He asked his servant why he was so lazy that day.

He told her not to read so fast.

I suggested my brother that we should go to some hill station for a change.

He asked them not to make a noise.

My cousin said that her room-mate had snored throughout the night.

Sarita told me that she would do it then or never.

He asked me if I could sing and I said that I couldn't.

He said that he didn't know the way and asked me if I did.

The Manager wanted to know what he could do for him.

The teacher urged the boys to be quiet.

He asked his teacher if he had to read that chapter.

In direct speech, the statement "May you succeed!" expresses a wish for someone's success. When converting it to indirect speech, the verb "said" changes to "wished" to convey the act of expressing a wish. Therefore, the correct conversion is Option C: He wished her success.