Question

He said, "Where shall I be this time next year?"
Select the option that correctly converts the above sentence into indirect speech.

• A. He asked that where should he be that time next year
• B. He wondered where he should be that time the following year
• C. He contemplated where shall he be that time the following year.
• D. He wondered where he would be that time the following year

Hint:

Shall with I/we becomes would in reported speech; also check the time-word shift.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Let's build the indirect version from scratch instead of just checking the four choices, then match it against the options.

Direct sentence: He said, "Where shall I be this time next year?"

Step 1: Since this is a question, the reporting verb "said" must change to a verb that reports a question. Here the speaker is asking about his own future, so "wondered" fits naturally ("asked himself" would also work, but only "wondered" appears among the choices).

Step 2: The question word "where" stays as it is and becomes the connector between the two clauses; no "that" is added and no question mark is used.

Step 3: The clause order changes from question order (shall I be) to statement order (he would be).

Step 4: The modal "shall", used here for simple future with "I", shifts to "would" in reported speech (it would only shift to "should" if the original sentence were asking for advice or a suggestion, which this is not).

Step 5: Time expressions shift away from the speaker's original viewpoint: "this time next year" becomes "that time the following year".

Putting it together: "He wondered where he would be that time the following year", which is exactly option D.

Let's summarize:

• Build the sentence rule by rule rather than guessing, then match it to the given options.
• Every plain future "shall" with I/we becomes "would" when reported.
• "Next year" always becomes "the following year" once the reporting verb is in the past tense.

This step-by-step build confirms option D is correct.