Select the option that expresses the given sentence in Direct to Indirect Speech.
She said, "How I wish I could meet him once!"
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
The selected sentence, "She said that she wished she could meet him once," is the correct indirect speech conversion for the direct sentence: She said, "How I wish I could meet him once!"
Explanation:
Reporting Verb: The direct speech expresses a strong desire or wish. While "exclaimed" is often used for sentences ending in exclamation marks, when a specific "wish" is mentioned, the verb "said" or "wished" followed by the core desire is appropriate.
Tense Change: In indirect speech, the present tense "wish" shifts to the past tense "wished.
"Pronoun Change: The first-person pronoun "I" changes to "she" to match the subject of the reporting verb.
Structural Integrity: This option retains all the key elements of the original sentiment ("wished," "could meet him once") while following standard grammatical rules for reported speech.