Select the correct indirect form of the given sentence.
Mr Pillai said to the young bank clerk, “Could you please fill in this form for me? My glasses are at home.”
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Mr Pillai requested the young bank clerk to fill in that form for him and said that his glasses were at home.
Changing a polite request and a statement into indirect speech:
| Change | Direct | Indirect | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reporting verb | said to the young bank clerk, “Could you please ...?” | requested the young bank clerk | “Could you please ...?” looks like a question, but it is a polite request. So “said to” becomes “requested”. |
| To + verb | Could you please fill in | to fill in | A request is reported with “to” + verb. “Could you”, “please” and the question mark are dropped. |
| Pronoun change | me, My | him, his | Mr Pillai is the speaker. So “me” becomes “him” and “my glasses” becomes “his glasses”. |
| Time and place words | this form | that form | The report is made later, away from the counter. So “this” becomes “that”. |
| Second part | My glasses are at home. | and said that his glasses were at home | The second sentence is a plain statement. It is added with “and said that”, and “are” becomes “were” after the past “said”. |
| Full sentence | Mr Pillai said to the young bank clerk, “Could you please fill in this form for me? My glasses are at home.” | Mr Pillai requested the young bank clerk to fill in that form for him and said that his glasses were at home. |
Other polite requests such as “Would you please ...?” and “Will you kindly ...?” are reported in the same way. Example: Sana said to me, “Would you please hold my bag?” → Sana requested me to hold her bag.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: Mr Pillai asked the young bank clerk could he please fill in that form for him and said that his glasses were at home. — Incorrect. “Could he please” keeps the question form. A polite request is reported as “requested ... to fill in”.
Option 3: Mr Pillai requested the young bank clerk to fill in that form for him and said that his glasses are at home. — Incorrect. “Are” is left unchanged. After the past “said” it becomes “were”.
Option 4: Mr Pillai requested the young bank clerk to fill in that form for me and said that his glasses were at home. — Incorrect. “For me” keeps the speaker’s own word. Mr Pillai is the speaker, so “me” becomes “him”.