Exercise 10. Put the following into indirect speech. 1. ’’Why is he so late for our appointment?” Sarah asked. 2. “Where is the ticket office?”
asked Mrs. Jones. 3. “W hat shall I do with my heavy luggage?” she said. (Use should) 4. “What
platform does the train leave from?” asked Bill. 5. “When was the timetable changed?” 1 asked. 6.
“Is a return ticket cheaper than two singles?” said my aunt. 7. “Do puppies travel free?” asked a dog
owner. 8. “Can you telephone from inter-city trains?” said the businessman. 9. “Have reserved a
seat?” 1 asked him. 10. “Would you like to join our Drama Group?”
Exercise 11. Put the following into indirect speech. REMEMBER! We keep the same word order when we repot a subject-question, though, if necessary, we change
the tense.
e.g.
' Who pa id the waiter?” —> He asked me
who (had) paid the waiter.
1. “What happened to Mr. Budd?” said one o f the men. 2. “Which o f his sons inherited his
estate?” asked another 3. “Who is going to live in a new house?” enquired a girl. 4. “What was the
most dangerous place on your way?” 5. “What train goes to Gatwick Airport?” asked Sheila. 6.
“What cinema are we going this evening?” Peter asked me. 7. “Who opened a checking account at
the bank last week?” 8. “W hat food is forbidden to eat?” the patient asked the doctor. 9. “What war
was fought in the USA between 1861 and 1865?” asked the teacher. 10. “Who is trying to preserve
28
our environment for future generations?” asked the guide. 11. “Who has just dropped a 10 pound
note?” I asked.
Exercise 12. Report these subject-questions moving the clauses ‘one tense back’ only where necessary. 1. “Who is next, please?” She wanted to know
who was next. 2. “What makes a noise like
that?” He wondered
. 3. “Which o f you is waiting to see me next?” The doctor a sk e d ___. 4.
‘W hose composition haven’t we heard yet?” The teacher asked us to tell her
. 5. “Who left this
bag here?” Tell m e ___ . 6. “What caused the accident?” Can you ex p lain ___ . 7. “Which newspaper
carried the article?” I’d like to k n o w ___ . 8. “Whose painting will win the competition?” I haven’t
any id e a ___. 9. “Which firms have won prizes for exports?” This article doesn’t s a y ___. 10.
“Which number can be divided by three?” The teacher asked ___ .
