Choose the correct indirect speech form of the following sentence.
Madhubala said to Dillip, "I had a very sumptuous meal yesterday."
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
Transformation from direct to indirect speech:
Reporting Verb Change: Since the original sentence is an assertive statement directed at a listener, "said to" is correctly changed to "told."
Tense Shift: The original sentence is in the Simple Past tense ("I had..."). In indirect speech, Simple Past shifts to the Past Perfect tense ("she had had..."). The first "had" is the auxiliary verb for the past perfect, and the second "had" is the past participle of the main verb "to have."
Pronoun Change: The first-person pronoun "I" changes to "she" to match the subject, Madhubala.
Time Expression Change: The word "yesterday" correctly shifts to "the previous day" (or "the day before") in indirect speech.
Indirect speech: Madhubala told Dillip that she had had a very sumptuous meal the previous day.