Choose the correct transformation of the given sentence in Indirect Speech:
Aparna said to the boatman, “What time will you take me to the island tomorrow?”
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Aparna asked the boatman what time he would take her to the island the next day.
Changing a question into indirect speech:
| Change | Direct | Indirect | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reporting verb | said to the boatman | asked the boatman | Aparna puts a question. So “said to” becomes “asked”. |
| Joining word | “ ” (quotation marks) | what time | The question words “what time” themselves join the question. No “that” is added. |
| Word order | will you take | he would take | The question becomes a plain statement. The subject “he” comes before the verb. |
| Tense change | will | would | “Will” talks about the future. After the past “said” it becomes “would” (would + base form (V1)). |
| Pronoun change | you, me | he, her | The boatman is spoken to, so “you” becomes “he”. The speaker is Aparna, so “me” becomes “her”. |
| Time word | tomorrow | the next day | The words are reported later, so “tomorrow” becomes “the next day”. |
| Full sentence | Aparna said to the boatman, “What time will you take me to the island tomorrow?” | Aparna asked the boatman what time he would take her to the island the next day. |
“Here” and “now” also change in a reported question. Example: Raghav said to the watchman, “Why is the gate locked now?” → Raghav asked the watchman why the gate was locked then.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: Aparna asked the boatman what time would he take her to the island the next day. — Incorrect. “Would he” keeps the question word order. In indirect speech the subject comes first: “he would”.
Option 2: Aparna asked the boatman what time he would take her to the island tomorrow. — Incorrect. “Tomorrow” is left unchanged. In the report it becomes “the next day”.
Option 3: Aparna asked the boatman what time he will take her to the island the next day. — Incorrect. “Will” is not changed. After the past reporting verb it becomes “would”.