Select the option that expresses the given sentence in indirect speech.
Kanhaiya said to me, “Do you want to sing?”
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
The correct answer is option 3 i.e. Kanhaiya asked me if I wanted to sing.
Reported Speech Transformation:
The correct structure is: Reporting verb + Pronoun + if/whether + Subject + Past tense of the verb + Rest of the sentence
- Reporting Verb:
- 'Said to' changes to 'asked' because the original speech is a question.
- Pronoun Change:
- 'You' changes to 'I' because the person being spoken to (the listener) is now the subject in the reported speech.
- Tense Change:
- In direct speech, the question uses the present tense 'want.' In reported speech, we change the tense of the verb to past tense ('wanted'). This follows the rule of changing the tense from present to past in indirect speech when the reporting verb is in the past tense.
- Word Order:
- In the direct question, the auxiliary verb 'Do' comes before the subject 'you.' However, in reported speech, we use a statement-like structure where the subject comes before the verb ('I wanted').
- Omission of Question Marks:
- In reported speech, we no longer need the question mark, as the sentence is no longer a direct question but a statement about what was asked
Hence, the correct sentence is:- 'Kanhaiya asked me if I wanted to sing.'