Question

Change the following statement into indirect speech.

He said, "Were you present at the scene of the accident?"

• A. He told that you had been present at the scene of the accident.
• B. He asked if I had been present at the scene of the accident.
• C. He said that if I had been present at the scene of the accident.
• D. He asked that I had been present at the scene of the accident.

Answer 1

The correct option is B He asked if I had been present at the scene of the accident.

The two ways of relating what a person has said are 1)direct and 2)indirect (reported).

In the direct speech, the exact words of the original speaker are repeated.

In the indirect speech (reported speech), the exact meaning of what the speaker told is expressed but not necessarily in the speaker’s exact words.

Option B is correct as the appropriate introductory verb 'asked' is used with the conjunction 'if' and 'had been' is used because the given question is in the simple past tense.

Options A, C, and D are wrong as 'told','said', and 'that' cannot be used respectively.

The correct answer is B) He asked if I had been present at the scene of the accident.