Choose the correct option to change the following statement to an exclamatory statement:
Major Dhyanchand was a great hockey player
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) - What a great hockey player major Dhayanchand was!
Explanation:
To convert an assertive sentence into an exclamatory sentence, we usually begin with “What” or “How” depending on the structure:
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Use “What a/an” before singular countable nouns.
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Use “How” before adjectives or adverbs (without a noun).
Here, “Major Dhyanchand was a great hockey player” →
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“a great hockey player” is a noun phrase, so we use “What a”.
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The verb “was” must remain in past tense to retain the original meaning.
Correct exclamatory form:
What a great hockey player Major Dhyanchand was!
Why others are incorrect:
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What a great hockey player Major Dhyanchand is! → Changes tense (is → was).
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What great hockey player Major Dhyanchand had been! → Awkward and overly formal; incorrect article usage.
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How great hockey player Major Dhyanchand is! → Missing article “a” and incorrect structure.
Therefore, Option 2 is grammatically and contextually correct.