Select the most appropriate indirect form of the given sentence.
Pauline said to Cornelius, “Will Mr. Vincent be coming for dinner on Thursday evening?”
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The most appropriate indirect form of the given sentence is Pauline asked Cornelius if Mr. Vincent would be coming for dinner on Thursday evening.
The other options are incorrect:
- Pauline wanted to know from Cornelius if Mr. Vincent is coming for dinner on Thursday evening. This is incorrect because the reported speech is in the present tense, but the reporting verb is in the past tense.
- Pauline said to Cornelius will Mr. Vincent be coming for dinner on Thursday evening. This is incorrect because the reported speech is in the direct form, but it should be in the indirect form.
- Pauline told Cornelius that Mr. Vincent would be coming for dinner on Thursday evening. This is incorrect because the reporting verb "told" suggests that Pauline is making a statement, but the reported speech is a question.