Select the option that expresses the given sentence in Direct to Indirect Speech.
He said, "I have completed the task."
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D
Explanation
To convert Direct Speech into Indirect (Reported) Speech, several changes are required:
Reporting Verb: "He said" remains "He said," and the conjunction "that" is added to link the reporting clause with the reported speech.
Pronoun Change: The first-person pronoun "I" changes to the third-person "he" to match the subject of the reporting verb.
Tense Change: Since the reporting verb "said" is in the past tense, the tense of the speech must shift backward (Backshift).
The Present Perfect ("have completed") changes to the Past Perfect ("had completed").
Indirect speech: He said that he had completed the task.