Choose the correct option to change the following Exclamatory sentence into an Assertive sentence:
Alas! We missed the last bus to the village by a few minutes.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → It is sad that we missed the last bus to the village by a few minutes.
Exclamatory to assertive (“Alas!” to “It is sad that”):
- An exclamatory sentence shows a strong feeling, such as joy, surprise or sorrow, and ends with an exclamation mark.
- An assertive sentence states a fact or an opinion and ends with a full stop.
| Change | Exclamatory | Assertive | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interjection | “Alas!” | It is sad that | “Alas!” shows sorrow. In the assertive sentence it becomes “It is sad that”. |
| Full sentence | Alas! We missed the last bus to the village by a few minutes. | It is sad that we missed the last bus to the village by a few minutes. |
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: It is lucky that we missed the last bus to the village by a few minutes. — Incorrect. “Lucky” shows good luck, but “Alas” shows sorrow.
Option 2: It is sad that we have missed the last bus to the village by a few minutes. — Incorrect. It changes “missed” to “have missed”. The tense must stay the same.
Option 4: It is sad that we did not miss the last bus to the village. — Incorrect. It adds “did not”. This gives the opposite meaning.