A sentence is provided in indirect speech. From the four given options, choose the one that most accurately conveys the sentence in its corresponding direct speech.
The lawyer said that had the evidence not been tampered with, the verdict could have been different.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
The correct answer is option 3 i.e. "Had the evidence not been tampered with, the verdict could have been different," said the lawyer.
Changes required:
- Conjunction: The conjunction “that” is removed and inverted commas are used in direct speech.
- Structure: The conditional structure “had the evidence not been…” remains the same in direct speech.
- Verb: The tense and modal verbs (could have been) remain unchanged as the meaning is preserved.
- Others: Proper punctuation and quotation marks are added.
Converted sentence: "Had the evidence not been tampered with, the verdict could have been different," said the lawyer.
Hence, the chosen option is correct.