Convert the following sentence from Indirect Speech to Direct Speech:
She asked him if he thought there was something wrong about the plan.
Choose the correct option:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → She asked, "Do you think there is something wrong with the plan?"
Yes/no question: indirect to direct speech:
| Change | Indirect | Direct | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reporting verb | asked him if | asked, “Do you think ...?” | “Asked ... if” shows a yes/no question, so the direct speech is a question beginning with a helping verb: “Do you think ...?” A question mark closes the quoted words. |
| Pronoun change | he | you | The person spoken to is addressed directly, so “he” becomes “you”. |
| Tense change | thought, was | think, is | The past forms go back to the present of the actual words: “thought” becomes “think”, “was” becomes “is”. |
| Full sentence | She asked him if he thought there was something wrong about the plan. | She asked, “Do you think there is something wrong with the plan?” |
Example: He asked me if I liked tea. → He asked, “Do you like tea?”
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 2: She said, "Is there something wrong with the plan ?" — Incorrect. "Do you think" is lost, so the question is no longer about his opinion, and "said" does not suit a question.
Option 3: She asked, " Do you believe the plan is wrong?" — Incorrect. The meaning changes: "something wrong with the plan" (a fault in it) is not the same as "the plan is wrong".
Option 4: She said, "How can you say anything wrong about the plan?" — Incorrect. It becomes a wh-question of protest, which is not what she asked.