Select the correct indirect form of the given sentence.
Mother said, “All the guests will arrive tonight.”

Correct option is A

The correct indirect speech is (a) Mother said that all the guests would arrive that night.
Definitions:
· Direct Speech: Quoting the speaker’s exact words (e.g., “will arrive tonight”)
· Indirect Speech: Conveying the message in reported form without exact quotes.
Rules of Conversion:
1. Reporting verb “said” is in the past tense, so the tense of the quoted sentence changes accordingly:
· “will arrive” → “would arrive”
2. Time expressions also change:
· “tonight” → “that night”
Correct Transformation:
· Direct: Mother said, “All the guests will arrive tonight.”
· Indirect: Mother said that all the guests would arrive that night.
Why Other Options Are Incorrect:
· (b) "will arrive tonight" – Tense and time not changed.
· (c) "told that..." – Missing object after “told” (should be “told us” or “told someone”).
· (d) “will arrive that night” – Tense not changed.
Final Indirect Sentence:
Mother said that all the guests would arrive that night.
This maintains both the tense and time reference shifts as per the rules of indirect speech.