MCQ
Narration — Indirect to Direct speech MCQ - Practice Questions with Answers
Solve 15 Narration — Indirect to Direct speech questions for RAS/RPSC preparation.
Practice questions
Q1Assertion (A): The sentence "She asked me where I lived" becomes "She said to me, 'Where do you live?'" in direct speech. Reason (R): In direct speech, an indirect wh-question regains interrogative word order, and the pronoun is changed according to the speaker and the listener. Choose the correct option.
An indirect wh-question uses statement word order, but in direct speech it returns to interrogative word order. The cue is "where I lived" after "asked me". In the direct question, "where I lived" becomes "Where do you live?" because the person addressed is "me", so the pronoun becomes "you". Therefore both A and R are true, and R correctly explains A.
Q2Choose the correct direct speech form of the following sentence: The teacher told the boys that they should revise the lesson before the test.
In indirect-to-direct narration, "told + object" is normally restored as "said to + object" before the quoted words. The cue is "told the boys that they should". Since the boys are directly addressed, "they" becomes "you", and the modal of advice remains "should". Therefore only C gives the correct direct speech.
Q3Statement 1: The officer requested the clerk not to delay the dispatch of the letters. Statement 2: In direct speech, "not to delay" should become a negative imperative addressed to the clerk. Which option correctly converts the indirect speech into direct speech?
An indirect request with "not to + verb" becomes a negative imperative in direct speech: "Do not + base verb". The cue is "requested the clerk not to delay". The clerk must be addressed through the quoted command, and the verb after "do not" must be "delay". Therefore only B is correct.
Q4Choose the correct direct speech form under the standard narration rule: the past perfect in the indirect clause is the backshift of the original simple past. He said that he had completed the register before lunch.
Under the standard backshift rule, a simple past in direct speech becomes past perfect in indirect speech after a past reporting verb. Since the reported clause is "he had completed", the restored direct form is "I completed the register before lunch." Hence C is correct.
Q5Which option is NOT a correct direct speech form of the sentence below? Meena told her brother that she would meet him there the next day.
The question asks for the option that is not a correct direct form. In direct speech, the speaker's pronoun "she" must become "I", and the addressed person's pronoun "him" must become "you". The indirect place and time expressions "there" and "the next day" are restored to direct-speech forms such as "here" and "tomorrow". Option A leaves the indirect pronouns and references unchanged, so only option A is incorrect.
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More questions
6Read the assertion and reason, and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): In changing an indirect yes/no question into direct speech, if/whether is removed and the auxiliary is placed before the subject. Reason (R): The indirect sentence She asked me whether I was ready becomes She said to me, "Are you ready?"
7Read the following statements and choose the correct option. Statement 1: In direct speech, an indirect question introduced by "if" or "whether" generally becomes a yes/no question. Statement 2: The word order in that direct question should remain the same as in the indirect clause.
8Match the indirect speech cues with their correct direct speech restorations. List I: 1. asked whether 2. ordered to leave 3. exclaimed with joy that 4. advised him to work hard List II: a. said, "Hurrah!" b. said to him, "Work hard." c. said, "Do you...?" d. said, "Leave."
9Choose the correct direct speech form of the following sentence. Use the standard exam rule that a direct past simple verb is backshifted to past perfect in indirect speech. The clerk said that he had submitted the report the previous day.
10Which of the following is the correct direct speech form of the sentence? The supervisor ordered the peon to close the record room immediately.
11Select the option in which the indirect speech has been correctly changed into direct speech under the standard narration rule: the modal would is the backshift of the original will. The clerk said that he would submit the file the next day.
12List I: Indirect speech cue 1. wished that 2. exclaimed with joy that 3. prayed that List II: Usual direct speech expression P. "Hurrah!" Q. "May..." R. "Would that..." For the sentence below, choose the option that uses the correct cue from List II. The old man wished that he were young again.
13Match List I with List II and choose the correct code. List I: Indirect speech 1. She exclaimed with joy that she had passed. 2. He requested me to lend him my pen. 3. The teacher said that honesty is the best policy. 4. Ravi asked where I lived. List II: Direct speech a. He said to me, "Please lend me your pen." b. Ravi said to me, "Where do you live?" c. She said, "Hurrah! I have passed." d. The teacher said, "Honesty is the best policy."
14Choose the correct direct speech form of the following sentence. In the original direct speech, the verb was in the simple past and the time word was "yesterday": He said that he had seen the file the previous day.
15Assertion (A): The sentence "The teacher warned the boys not to make a noise" can be changed into direct speech as: The teacher said to the boys, "Do not make a noise." Reason (R): In changing an indirect negative command into direct speech, "not to + verb" is normally restored as "Do not + verb".