Choose the correct direct speech form of the following sentence.
He said that this had been in the box.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
Conversion from indirect speech to direct speech:
Original Sentence: "He said that this had been in the box." (Indirect Speech)
Tense Conversion: In indirect speech, the past perfect ("had been") typically originates from the simple past ("was") or the present perfect ("has been") in direct speech.
Analysis of Options:
Option (1)
He said, "This was in the box."
This is the correct choice.
The simple past "was" correctly shifts to the past perfect "had been" when moving from direct to indirect speech.