Question 1

Convert to indirect speech: The teacher said, "You must submit your project by Friday."

Accepted Answer

In indirect speech, the modal verb 'must' in reported speech typically becomes 'had to' when the reporting verb is in past tense ('said'). The direct command/instruction 'You must submit' becomes an indirect obligation 'they had to submit'. Additionally, 'your' changes to 'their' (pronoun shift), and 'Friday' may remain unchanged or shift depending on context, but typically becomes 'the following Friday' or 'that Friday' for clarity. The correct conversion is: 'The teacher said that they had to submit their project by Friday.' (or 'the following Friday').

Question 2

Convert to indirect speech: The manager said to the employees, "You should complete the report by next Monday."

Accepted Answer

In indirect speech, the reporting verb 'said to' becomes 'told', and the modal 'should' typically remains unchanged as it is already a past-form modal. However, the time reference 'next Monday' shifts to 'the following Monday' (or 'that Monday') because it is relative to the time of speaking. The second person pronouns 'you' shift to third person 'they'. The correct conversion is: 'The manager told the employees that they should complete the report by the following Monday.'

Question 3

Convert to indirect speech: She said, "I have been working here for five years and I am very happy."

Accepted Answer

In indirect speech, the reporting verb 'said' requires the subordinate clause to be introduced by 'that'. The present perfect continuous 'have been working' becomes past perfect continuous 'had been working', and the simple present 'am' becomes simple past 'was'. The time reference 'for five years' remains unchanged as it is a duration, not a specific point in time. The correct conversion is: 'She said that she had been working there for five years and she was very happy.' Note: 'here' may shift to 'there' depending on context, but 'for five years' remains constant.

Question 4

Convert to indirect speech: He said to her, "I will help you if you ask me."

Accepted Answer

In indirect speech, the reporting verb 'said to' becomes 'told', and both the main clause and the conditional clause undergo tense backshift. The future tense 'will help' becomes 'would help', and the simple present 'ask' in the conditional clause becomes simple past 'asked'. The second person pronouns 'you' and 'me' shift to third person 'her' and 'him' respectively. The correct conversion is: 'He told her that he would help her if she asked him.'

Question 5

Convert to indirect speech: She said to me, "I have completed my assignment and I will submit it tomorrow."

Accepted Answer

In indirect speech, the reporting verb 'said' requires a subordinate clause introduced by 'that'. The direct speech contains two actions: a completed action (present perfect) and a future action. In indirect speech, present perfect becomes past perfect, and future tense becomes conditional (would + infinitive). The correct conversion is: 'She told me that she had completed her assignment and would submit it the next day.' Note: 'said to me' becomes 'told me', and 'tomorrow' becomes 'the next day' (time reference shift).

Question 6

In the following sentence, four parts are underlined. Identify the part that contains a grammatical error. If there is no error, select 'No error'.

The teacher asked the students (A) if they have completed (B) their homework, and she told them (C) that they should submit it by Friday (D).

(A) The teacher asked the students
(B) if they have completed
(C) their homework, and she told them
(D) that they should submit it by Friday
(E) No error

Accepted Answer

The error lies in part (B). When converting direct speech to indirect speech, the tense must shift according to the backshift rule. Since the main clause uses 'asked' (simple past), the reported clause must also shift to past tense. 'Have completed' (present perfect) should become 'had completed' (past perfect). The correct sentence should read: 'The teacher asked the students if they had completed their homework, and she told them that they should submit it by Friday.' Parts (A), (C), and (D) are grammatically correct.

Question 7

Identify the error in the following sentence:
She said that she (A) has completed / (B) the project / (C) last week / (D) successfully. / No error

Accepted Answer

In reported speech (indirect speech), when the reporting verb is in simple past ('said'), the reported clause must shift to past tense. 'Has completed' (present perfect) is incorrect; it should be 'had completed' (past perfect) to maintain tense consistency in indirect speech.

Question 8

Identify the error in the sentence below. The underlined parts are marked A, B, C, and D.

The manager (A) told / that the project (B) will be completed / by next Friday, (C) and he requested / that all team members (D) attend the meeting. / No error

Accepted Answer

The error is in part B. In indirect speech, when the reporting verb is in the past tense ('told'), the reported clause must shift to a past tense form. 'Will be completed' (simple future) is incorrect; it should be 'would be completed' (conditional/past future) to maintain tense consistency in indirect speech.

Question 9

Identify the error in the following sentence:
The manager asked the employee (A) if he / (B) has completed / (C) the report / (D) on time. / No error

Accepted Answer

In indirect speech with a past reporting verb ('asked'), the reported clause must shift to past tense. 'Has completed' (present perfect) is incorrect; it should be 'had completed' (past perfect). The rule requires tense backshift: present perfect in direct speech becomes past perfect in indirect speech.

Question 10

Identify the error in the following sentence:
He asked me (A) whether I / (B) would attend / (C) the meeting / (D) yesterday. / No error

Accepted Answer

In indirect speech, when the reporting verb is in past tense ('asked'), the reported clause shifts to past. However, 'yesterday' is incompatible with 'would attend' (future in past). If the original question was about the past, it should be 'had attended.' If about the future, the time reference should be 'the next day' or 'the following day,' not 'yesterday.' The time reference 'yesterday' contradicts the future modal 'would attend.'

Question 11

She said that she (A) has completed / (B) had completed / (C) would complete / (D) completes the project before he arrived. No error

Accepted Answer

The sentence requires reported speech with proper tense sequencing. When the main clause uses 'said' (past tense), the reported clause must shift one tense back. Since the action (completing the project) happened before 'he arrived' (another past event), past perfect is required.

Question 12

She enquired whether he (A) has been working / (B) had been working / (C) is working / (D) was working in that company for the past five years. No error

Accepted Answer

In reported speech with 'enquired' (past), the reported clause must shift tense backward. The phrase 'for the past five years' indicates a continuous action from the past, requiring past perfect continuous, not present perfect continuous.

Question 13

The teacher asked the students whether they (A) have understood / (B) had understood / (C) understand / (D) understood the lesson that was taught yesterday. No error

Accepted Answer

In reported speech with 'asked' (past tense), the verb in the reported clause must shift backward. Since the lesson was taught in the past (yesterday), the students' understanding also occurred in the past, requiring simple past.

Question 14

Identify the error in the following sentence:

The manager told me that (A) he would submit the report (B) by next Friday and that (C) he has already informed the director about the delay. (D) No error

Accepted Answer

The sentence contains a tense inconsistency in reported speech. When the main clause uses past tense ('told'), all reported clauses must maintain consistent backshift. The phrase 'he has already informed' uses present perfect, which breaks the backshift rule in indirect speech.

SBI Clerk Direct & Indirect Speech

Direct & Indirect Speech— Rules & Concept

Key Points to Remember

Exam-Specific Tips

Direct & Indirect Speech — Practice Questions

60-Second Revision — Direct & Indirect Speech