Select the option that expresses the given sentence in Direct Speech.
She said that she had been sick for a week.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
Correct Answer: She said, "I had been sick for a week."
Explanation
• Reporting Verb: The past tense reporting verb said remains unchanged.
• Tense Rule: The Past Perfect tense (had been) in indirect speech corresponds directly to the Past Perfect tense (had been) in direct speech, as the past perfect does not undergo further backshifting.
• Pronoun Change: The third-person pronoun she in indirect speech shifts back to the first-person pronoun I in direct speech when referring to the subject.
• Punctuation: The conjunction that is removed and replaced by a comma followed by quotation marks.