Question

Identify the sentences that correctly transform the following sentence into indirect speech:
Original sentence: \[ \text{‘What did you eat for breakfast today?’ The doctor asked the patient.} \] Options:
(a) The doctor asked the patient what he ate for breakfast that day.
(b) The doctor asked the patient what he had eaten for breakfast that day.
(c) The doctor asked the patient what he ate for breakfast today.
(d) The doctor asked to patient what did he eat for breakfast that day.
Select the correct answer from the options given below:

• A. a, b, c
• B. b and c only
• C. b and d only
• D. a and b only

Hint:

When transforming direct speech into indirect speech, always adjust the tense, pronouns, and time expressions to maintain grammatical correctness and logical consistency.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Understand the Task.
We need to identify which of the given sentences correctly transform the original direct speech into indirect speech. To do this, we must follow the rules for converting direct speech to indirect speech:
(A) Change the tense: If the main verb in the reporting clause (e.g., "asked") is in the past tense, the verb in the reported clause should also be adjusted to reflect the past.
(B) Adjust pronouns: Change pronouns as necessary to maintain consistency with the context.
(C) Remove quotation marks: Indirect speech does not use quotation marks.
(D) Adjust time expressions: Replace present-tense references (e.g., "today") with past-tense references (e.g., "that day").
Step 2: Analyze Each Option.
The original sentence is: \[ \text{‘What did you eat for breakfast today?’ The doctor asked the patient.} \] (A) (a) The doctor asked the patient what he ate for breakfast that day.

- Tense: The verb "ate" is in the simple past tense, which is appropriate since the main verb "asked" is in the past tense.
- Pronoun: "you" in direct speech becomes "he" in indirect speech.
- Time expression: "today" changes to "that day."
- Correctness: This option is grammatically correct.
(B) (b) The doctor asked the patient what he had eaten for breakfast that day.

- Tense: The verb "had eaten" is in the past perfect tense. This is also correct because it reflects an action that occurred before the time of asking.
- Pronoun: "you" in direct speech becomes "he" in indirect speech.
- Time expression: "today" changes to "that day."
- Correctness: This option is grammatically correct.
(C) (c) The doctor asked the patient what he ate for breakfast today.

- Tense: The verb "ate" is in the simple past tense, which is correct.
- Pronoun: "you" in direct speech becomes "he" in indirect speech.
- Time expression: "today" is still used, but in indirect speech, it should be changed to "that day."
- Correctness: This option is incorrect because "today" is not adjusted to "that day."
(D) (d) The doctor asked to patient what did he eat for breakfast that day.

- Structure: The phrase "asked to patient" is grammatically incorrect; it should be "asked the patient." Additionally, the word order "what did he eat" is incorrect in indirect speech (it should be "what he ate").
- Correctness: This option is incorrect.
Step 3: Select the Correct Options.
From the analysis above, the correct options are:
(a) The doctor asked the patient what he ate for breakfast that day.
(b) The doctor asked the patient what he had eaten for breakfast that day.
Thus, the correct answer is: \[ \text{(D) a and b only} \]