Select the option that expresses the given sentence in direct voice.
He asked me if I would have been able to finish the report that day if he had not helped me with the research, which had been a very tedious process.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
The original sentence in indirect speech is: 'He asked me if I would have been able to finish the report that day if he had not helped me with the research, which had been a very tedious process.'
To convert this to direct speech, the following changes must be made:
The reporting verb 'asked' indicates a question, so the direct speech must be a question enclosed in quotation marks.
The pronoun 'I' changes to 'you' to address the listener directly.
The pronoun 'he' changes to 'I' when referring to the speaker within the quote.
The time reference 'that day' changes back to 'today'.
The past perfect tense in the clause 'which had been a very tedious process' changes back to the simple past tense 'which was a very tedious process' (or present perfect 'has been', but simple past is the most common and appropriate choice among the options).
The structure 'if I would have been able to finish' changes back to the direct question 'Would you have been able to finish'.