Choose the option that correctly transforms the given sentence from direct speech to indirect speech:
The Kathvachak said to the crowd, "The sun rises every day for all of us without any expectations in return and we must cultivate the same feeling in ourselves."
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → The Kathvachak told the crowd that the sun rises every day for all of them without any expectations in return and that they must cultivate the same feeling in themselves.
Statement in indirect speech:
Deciding clue: "The sun rises every day" is a universal truth.
Other standard changes (when the reported words are not a universal truth): is/am → was, are → were, do/does → did, has/have → had, will → would, can → could, may → might.
| Change | Direct | Indirect | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reporting verb | said to | told | “Said to” becomes told (tell takes its object directly, without “to”). |
| Joining word | “ ” (inverted commas) ... and | that ... and that | The statement is joined with that, and that is repeated before the second clause joined by “and”. |
| Tense kept | rises, must | rises, must | A universal truth keeps the present tense. “Must” also stays. |
| Pronoun change | us, we, ourselves | them, they, themselves | The first-person pronouns of the speaker and the crowd become third person: “us” becomes them, “we” becomes they, “ourselves” becomes themselves. |
| Full sentence | The Kathvachak said to the crowd, “The sun rises every day for all of us without any expectations in return and we must cultivate the same feeling in ourselves.” | The Kathvachak told the crowd that the sun rises every day for all of them without any expectations in return and that they must cultivate the same feeling in themselves. |
Example: The teacher said, “Water boils at 100 °C.” → The teacher said that water boils at 100 °C.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: The Kathvachak told the crowd that the sun rises everyday for all of us without any expectations in return and we must cultivate the same feeling in ourselves. — Incorrect.
- The pronouns "us", "we" and "ourselves" are not changed.
- "everyday" (one word) is an adjective (everyday life). The adverb phrase is "every day".
Option 2: The Kathvachak told to the crowd that the sun rises everyday for all of them without any expectations in return and that we must cultivate the same feeling in ourselves. — Incorrect.
- "told to the crowd" is wrong. Tell takes its object without "to".
- "we" and "ourselves" are not changed, and "everyday" should be "every day".
Option 3: The Kathvachak told the crowd that the sun rises every day for all of them without any expectations in return and that we must cultivate the same feeling in themselves. — Incorrect. "we" is left unchanged while "themselves" is changed, so "we ... themselves" do not agree. It should be "they ... themselves".