In the questions below the sentences have been given in Direct/Indirect…
2024
In the questions below the sentences have been given in Direct/Indirect speech. From the given alternatives, choose the one which best expresses the given sentence in Indirect/Direct speech.
"Are you alone, my son?" asked a soft voice close behind me.
- A.
A soft voice asked that what I was doing there alone.
- B.
A soft voice said to me are you alone son.
- C.
A soft voice from my back asked If I was alone.
- D.
A soft voice behind me asked If I was alone.
Attempted by 359 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D
Correct answer: A soft voice behind me asked me if I was alone.
Explanation:
Key changes when converting the direct question to reported speech:
Remove quotation marks and the direct-question word order; make the clause a subordinate (reported) clause.
Change the present tense to the past tense: "are" → "was".
Introduce the reported clause with 'if' or 'whether' for yes/no questions.
Omit the vocative "my son" in the reported clause (it is not needed) and change the pronoun "you" to "I" because the speaker is reporting the question about themselves.
Putting these together gives a clear, grammatical reported sentence: "A soft voice behind me asked me if I was alone."