Question

Choose the correct indirect speech form of the given statement.
Jack said, "Can I go and dance, father?"

• A. Jack asked his father if he can go and dance
• B. Jack asked father whether he went and danced
• C. Jack sought permission for dance
• D. Jack asked his father if he could go and dance

Answer 1

The correct option is D Jack asked his father if he could go and dance

Option D is the correct answer as the tense of the sentence has been converted to simple past from simple present and the inverted commas have been removed.

Option A is incorrect because the tense of the sentence has not been changed into simple past.

Option B is incorrect because the word 'can', which is the word that shows that he is asking for permission, has been omitted thus changing the meaning of the sentence on conversion.

Option C is incorrect because reported or indirect speech focuses more on the content of what someone said rather than their exact words and this option does not fulfill this requirement.