Reported Speech Exercises with Answers

In reported wh-questions, 'said to' changes to 'asked', the question word stays (which), word order becomes subject-verb (not question order), and the verb backshifts: 'are' → 'were'. The pronoun 'your' changes to 'his' (Shekhar's books). Option B keeps 'are yours' — no backshift. Option D also fails to backshift.

'Said to me' changes to 'told me'. The verb backshifts: 'have washed' (present perfect) → 'had washed' (past perfect). Pronoun 'I' → 'she', 'my' → 'her'. Option B wrongly uses 'asked' and 'was washing'. Options C and D use incorrect verb forms ('has being', 'have been washed') that are not grammatical.

Vilakshna's original line 'this new medicine is great' expresses her personal opinion, so the reporting verb 'thought' captures that stance. 'Is' backshifts to 'was'. 'This' changes to 'that' (demonstrative shift). Option C ('but the new medicine was great') is close but misses the 'thought that' which conveys it is her opinion, not a fact. Option D keeps 'that new medicine' but also omits 'thought that'.

'How long have you been working' → 'how long she had been working' (backshift: have been → had been; pronoun you→she; this task → that task). The critical point: indirect questions do NOT use inversion (no 'had she working'). Options C and D both use inversion ('had she been working') — wrong. Option A uses 'for how long was she working' — wrong tense form and wrong position of 'for'.

'How do you plan' → 'how he planned' (backshift: do plan → planned; pronoun you→he; no inversion). Option A uses past perfect 'had planned' — over-backshifting; the original is present tense, so simple past is enough. Option B uses question inversion ('did he plan') — wrong for indirect speech. Option D changes the verb form to 'was planning' (past continuous) which alters the meaning.

'Why were you absent yesterday' → 'why he had been absent the previous day'. The past verb 'were' backshifts to 'had been' (past perfect). 'Yesterday' changes to 'the previous day'. 'You' changes to 'he'. Option A uses 'did he remain' — question inversion, wrong. Option C ('the reason he was absent') changes the wh-word incorrectly. Option D keeps 'yesterday' (no time change) and uses question inversion.

'My teachers are guiding me' → 'his teachers were guiding him'. Pronoun 'my' → 'his', 'me' → 'him'. Verb backshifts: 'are guiding' → 'were guiding'. The reporting verb 'told her' is used because Amit is addressing Ambika. Option A keeps 'are guiding' — no backshift. Option B says 'the teachers' (not 'his teachers') — pronoun shift missed. Option D uses 'have been guiding' — wrong tense.

'The flight will be delayed' → 'the flight would be delayed'. 'Will' backshifts to 'would'. Option C keeps 'will' — no backshift, wrong. Option B restructures the sentence ('there would be a delay') — it's grammatically possible but changes the meaning slightly and doesn't reflect the original as closely. Option D uses 'could' instead of 'would' — 'could' implies possibility/ability, not the future tense backshift.

'Are you sure you can manage' → 'if she was sure she could manage'. 'Are' (present) backshifts to 'was'. 'Can' backshifts to 'could'. 'You' → 'she'. Option A keeps 'is' and 'can' — no backshift. Option C uses 'surely can' — wrong adverb placement and no backshift. Option D uses 'to managing' — grammatically incorrect.

Geeta's words 'I want to stay at home and call my friends over' become 'she wanted to stay at home and call her friends over'. 'I' → 'she', 'my' → 'her', 'want' → 'wanted' (backshift). The phrase 'call my friends over' (invite them to come home) changes to 'call her friends over' — same meaning preserved. Option A changes 'call friends over' to 'call friends for celebrating' — wrong. Option B keeps first person 'I' — wrong. Option D keeps present tense 'wants' — no backshift.

'All the students will get two days' → 'that all the students would get two days'. 'Will' backshifts to 'would'. Option A uses 'should' — implies obligation, not the future certainty of 'will'. Option C uses 'ought to' — same problem, implies moral obligation. Option D uses 'must be getting' — wrong modal and wrong tense form.

that those were hard times

'These are hard times' → 'those were hard times'. Demonstratives shift from near to far (these→those) because the speaker is being reported from a distance. The verb 'are' backshifts to 'were'. The reporting verb is 'remarked' (as given in the sentence); complete the clause with 'that those were hard times'.

he had spent all the money his father had given him the previous day

The son's words 'All the money father gave me yesterday' need to be converted: 'father' → 'his father', 'gave' (simple past) → 'had given' (past perfect, since this happened before the conversation), 'me' → 'him', 'yesterday' → 'the previous day'. Adding a verb: 'he had spent all the money his father had given him the previous day'.

which books they were going to purchase that day from the Book Fest

'Which books are we going to purchase today' → indirect: 'which books they were going to purchase that day'. Pronoun 'we' → 'they'. Verb backshifts: 'are going' → 'were going'. Time word 'today' → 'that day'. No question mark in reported speech. No inversion — the verb follows the subject directly.

although they were a bit expensive, she liked to add tomatoes to her diet

The customer's sentence 'Although they are a bit expensive, I like to add tomatoes to my diet' converts as follows: 'they are' → 'they were' (backshift), 'I like' → 'she liked' (backshift + pronoun change), 'my diet' → 'her diet' (pronoun change). The conjunction 'although' stays. The adverbial clause comes first, matching the original word order.

there was no pain in his lower back, but he felt a numbing sensation in his left leg

'There is no pain' → 'there was no pain' (backshift). 'I feel' → 'he felt' (backshift + pronoun). 'My left leg' → 'his left leg' (pronoun). 'In the lower back' becomes 'in his lower back' to make the reference clear (since 'the' would be ambiguous without a pronoun in reported form).

there had been a long power cut in his locality and their inverter battery had also run out

The student's explanation uses simple past ('was', 'ran out'). In reported speech, simple past backshifts to past perfect ('had been', 'had run out'). Pronoun changes: 'my locality' → 'his locality', 'our inverter battery' → 'their inverter battery'. The conjunction 'and' stays. 'Also' stays in the same position.

she had finished the project the previous day

'I finished the project yesterday' → 'she had finished the project the previous day'. Simple past 'finished' backshifts to past perfect 'had finished' because the action was already complete before the conversation. 'Yesterday' → 'the previous day' (time reference shift). 'I' → 'she' (pronoun change).

that he had a wide range of sportswear

'I have a wide range of sportswear' → 'that he had a wide range of sportswear'. 'Have' (present simple) backshifts to 'had' (past simple). 'I' → 'he'. The reporting verb given is 'stated' — use 'stated that' to introduce the reported clause. Notice: the second sentence (customer's request) is already converted in the question; you only need to convert the salesman's line.

she would help her plan her itinerary

'Will you help me plan my itinerary' → indirect yes/no question: 'if she would help her plan her itinerary'. 'Will' backshifts to 'would'. Pronoun 'you' → 'she', 'me' → 'her', 'my itinerary' → 'her itinerary'. Since it is a question to Tanu, all pronouns referring to Tanu change from 'you' to 'she'.