Choose the correct indirect narration of the following statement from the given alternatives:
William said to Margaret, "You are now twenty-one years old and you cannot behave like a child."
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
Correct Answer: William told Margaret that she was then twenty-one years old and she could not behave like a child.
Explanation
• Reporting Verb: 'Said to' changes to 'told' when followed by an object.
• Conjunction: The inverted commas are replaced by 'that'.
• Pronoun Change: The second-person pronoun 'you' refers to the listener 'Margaret', so it changes to 'she'.
• Tense Change: Since the reporting verb is in the past tense ('said'), the present tense forms inside the quotation shift to the past tense: 'are' becomes 'was', and 'cannot' becomes 'could not'.
• Adverb Change: The time expression 'now' changes to 'then' in indirect speech.