Somebody asked me, "Does the bus arrive before nine."
Correct answer: B. Somebody asked me if the bus arrived before nine.
- A. Somebody asked me if the bus arrives arrive before nine.
- B. Somebody asked me if the bus arrived before nine.
- C. Somebody asked me did the bus arrive before nine.
- D. Somebody asked me if the bus had arrived before nine.
Explanation
When converting direct speech to indirect speech:- "Does" becomes "arrived" to change the verb tense from present simple to past simple, which is necessary in indirect speech.- "if" is used instead of "does" to introduce the indirect question.- The sentence is rephrased to maintain the correct word order and grammar.
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About Direct and Indirect Speech
Direct speech gives a speaker’s exact words, whereas indirect speech reports the meaning without quotation marks. Questions cover reporting verbs, pronoun changes, tense backshift, time and place expressions, punctuation, and the transformation of questions, commands and requests, including cases where backshift is not required.
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