Choose the correct option changing the given sentence into Direct Speech.
Mary asked if there were any letters for her.

Correct option is D

Option 4 precisely and correctly converts the indirect speech sentence into direct speech. The original indirect statement is: Mary asked if there were any letters for her. In direct speech, you must use Mary’s exact words and the correct pronoun. Mary would say "me," not "her." The appropriate interrogative form for plural "letters" is "Are there any letters for me?" The reporting clause is "Said Mary," which follows standard conventions. This structure uses present tense for the direct question and is grammatically accurate for subject-verb agreement ("Are" for plural "letters").

Information Booster

About the Grammar Rule & Conventions:

Work/Author: The process of changing indirect speech to direct speech, especially with questions, is widely taught in English grammar textbooks, such as Raymond Murphy’s English Grammar in Use and Huddleston & Pullum’s A Student’s Introduction to English Grammar.

Genre: Traditional Grammar, Language Pedagogy

Summary of the Correct Option:

Indirect to Direct Speech: Indirect speech conveys the essential message, but not in the original words. Direct speech reproduces the speaker’s exact words, requiring suitable punctuation (quotation marks), accurate word order (auxiliary + subject for questions), and correct pronoun shift ("her" → "me").

In this sentence, Mary (the speaker) is asking, herself, whether any letters have come addressed to her, hence "Are there any letters for me?" is the direct version of her original question.

The reporting verb "said Mary" is also standardized in direct speech after the quoted question.

Additional Knowledge

Incorrect Options Explained:

(1) “Are there some letters for her?”, Says Mary.

The pronoun "her" is incorrect in direct speech; it should be "me" as Mary would use first person when speaking. Also, "some letters" is less natural in this interrogative context than "any letters." "Says Mary" should be in the past form: "said Mary."

(2) “Were there any letters for me?”, Said Mary.

The use of "were" (past tense) is incorrect in direct speech. Mary’s original question would be present tense: "Are there any letters for me?"

(3) “Is there any letters for me?”, Said Mary.

"Is" does not agree with plural "letters"; it should be "Are there any letters for me?"