Direct/Indirect Speech

LSSSSB Non-Technical · English · 77 practice questions with answers and explanations: 40 Easy, 36 Medium, 1 Hard.

Sample questions

Sample Easy question 1

Change to indirect speech: She said, "I like mangoes."

  1. She said that I liked mangoes.
  2. She said that she had liked mangoes.
  3. She said that she likes mangoes.
  4. She said that she liked mangoes.
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Answer: D. Present simple → past simple; 'I' → 'she'.

Sample Easy question 2

Change to indirect speech: Ravi said, "I will come tomorrow."

  1. Ravi said that he will come the next day.
  2. Ravi said that he would come the next day.
  3. Ravi said that I would come the next day.
  4. Ravi said that he will come tomorrow.
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Answer: B. 'Will' → 'would' and 'tomorrow' → 'the next day'.

Sample Easy question 3

Change to indirect speech: They said, "We are playing."

  1. They said that we were playing.
  2. They said that they are playing.
  3. They said that they were playing.
  4. They said that they had been playing.
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Answer: C. Present continuous → past continuous; 'we' → 'they'.

Sample Medium question 4

Change to indirect speech: He said to me, "You should not have said that."

  1. He told me that I should not have said that.
  2. He told me that I should not had said that.
  3. He told me that you should not have said that.
  4. He told me that I must not have said that.
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Answer: A. 'Should have' with a past participle does not change in reported speech.

Sample Medium question 5

Change to indirect speech: She said to him, "Would you like some coffee?"

  1. She asked him if he would like some coffee.
  2. She asked him if he will like some coffee.
  3. She asked him would he like some coffee.
  4. She asked him that he liked some coffee.
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Answer: A. 'Would' stays unchanged: 'if he would like'.

Sample Medium question 6

Change to indirect speech: "What a beautiful sunset it is!" she said.

  1. She exclaimed that it was a very beautiful sunset.
  2. She said what a beautiful sunset it was.
  3. She exclaimed what a beautiful sunset it is.
  4. She asked what a beautiful sunset it was.
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Answer: A. An exclamation becomes a statement with 'exclaimed that ... very ...'.

Sample Hard question 7

Change to indirect speech: The lawyer said, "If the accused had been careful, he would have escaped."

  1. The lawyer said that if the accused had been careful, he would have escaped.
  2. The lawyer said that if the accused has been careful, he would have escaped.
  3. The lawyer said that if the accused was careful, he would escape.
  4. The lawyer said that if the accused had been careful, he will have escaped.
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Answer: A. A past unreal condition (past perfect) is already as far back as it goes and stays unchanged.

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