Question : Select the most appropriate option to change the sentences from Direct Speech to Reported Speech.
The HR said, “Are you interested in the offer?”
Option 1: The HR said that if I was interested in the offer.
Option 2: The HR said that if I were interested in the offer.
Option 3: The HR asks if I am interested in the offer.
Option 4: The HR asked me if I was interested in the offer.
Correct Answer: The HR asked me if I was interested in the offer.
Solution :
The correct answer is option 4.
The HR asked me if I was interested in the offer.
Explanation:
The direct sentence is in the simple present tense in interrogative form, hence in order to convert it into indirect, we need to follow the below rules.
When we convert a sentence from the direct to the indirect mode(especially for a sentence ending with a mark of interrogation). we reverse the subject-verb placement. In direct sentences, we have the verb before the subject; while in indirect, the verb follows the subject.
When the reporting or principal verb is in the present tense, all present tenses of the direct are changed into the corresponding past tenses.