1He told me that he ............... me the other day.
Wrong!
The past simple in direct speech usually backshifts to "had seen" in indirect speech.
2He said that he ............... permit that.
Wrong!
In indirect speech, "will not" usually changes to "wouldn't".
3The father told his son that he ............... him a nice gift.
Wrong!
The present perfect in direct speech usually backshifts to "had bought" in indirect speech.
4My uncle told me that he ............... me a laptop.
Wrong!
In indirect speech, "will buy" usually changes to "would buy".
5He told me that he ............... to move to Singapore.
Wrong!
The simple present in direct speech usually backshifts to "wanted" in indirect speech.
6The teacher advised them ............... hard.
Wrong!
After "advised them", we use the to-infinitive "to work".
7Sonia told Mathew that she ............... all of her friends.
Wrong!
The present perfect in direct speech usually backshifts to "had invited" in indirect speech.
8The manager told me that if I ............... another deadline, I would be sacked.
Wrong!
The present simple in the reported condition usually backshifts to "missed".
9The father told his son that he ............... his parents.
Wrong!
In indirect speech, "have to obey" usually changes to "had to obey".
10He told me that he ............... a strange experience the previous day.
Wrong!
The past simple verb "had" usually backshifts to "had had" in indirect speech.
11I reminded him that his mother ............... for him anxiously.
Wrong!
In indirect speech, "will be waiting" usually changes to "would be waiting".
12The cop asked the man where ............... going.
Wrong!
An indirect question uses normal subject-verb order, so the correct form is "he was".
Exercise complete
0 out of 12
correct answers
Answers
- He told me that he had seen me the other day.
- He said that he wouldn’t permit that.
- The father told his son that he had bought him a nice gift.
- My uncle told me that he would buy me a laptop.
- He told me that he wanted to move to Singapore.
- The teacher advised them to work hard.
- Sonia told Mathew that she had invited all of her friends.
- The manager told me that if I missed another deadline, I would be sacked.
- The father told his son that he had to obey his parents.
- He told me that he had had a strange experience the previous day.
- I reminded him that his mother would be waiting for him anxiously.
- The cop asked the man where he was going.