Read Somil's request to his mother : “Can you teach me to swim ?” Report Somil's request by completing the following sentence correctly : Somil asked his mother .
Read Somil's request to his mother : “Can you teach me to swim ?” Report Somil's request by completing the following sentence correctly : Somil asked his mother .
if/whether she could teach him to swim
Marking Scheme
- 10.5 mark: correct connector 'if/whether' with correctly shifted modal 'could'.
- 20.5 mark: correct pronouns — 'she' for the mother and 'him' for Somil — plus retained infinitive 'to swim'.
Hint
'Can you...?' as a request becomes 'if/whether she could...' in reported speech — shift the modal (can→could) and adjust the pronouns for both speaker and listener.
Quick Oral Answer
Somil asked his mother if she could teach him to swim — the modal 'can' shifts to 'could', and the pronouns adjust to 'she' for the mother and 'him' for Somil.
Analysis & Explanation
Tests reporting of a polite request phrased as a modal Yes/No question ("Can you...?").
Concept
- "Can you...?" is grammatically a Yes/No question, so it needs the connector "if/whether"; the modal "can" backshifts to "could" under the past reporting verb "asked".
Key points
- Pronoun shifts: "you" (mother) → "she"; "me" (Somil) → "him".
- The infinitive "to swim" stays unchanged — infinitives do not backshift.
Common mistakes
- Retaining "can" instead of shifting to "could".
- Mixing up pronoun referents (e.g., using "he" for Somil instead of "him", or the wrong gender for the mother).
Common Mistakes
- 1Leaving the modal unchanged as 'can' instead of shifting it to 'could'.
- 2Confusing the pronoun references, e.g., writing 'if he could teach him' instead of 'if she could teach him'.
- 3Omitting the connector 'if/whether', producing an incomplete or ungrammatical reported clause.
Interesting Facts
Modal verbs used for polite requests ('Can/Could/Will/Would you...?') still count grammatically as Yes/No questions in reported speech, requiring 'if/whether'.
Family and everyday-life scenarios (like a child asking a parent to teach a skill) are a common thematic source for CBSE reported-speech questions.
The modal backshift chain can→could, will→would, may→might, must→had to is one of the most tested rule-sets in narration exercises.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why does 'can' become 'could' here?
In reported speech, when the reporting verb is in the past tense (e.g., 'asked'), modal verbs shift one step back: can→could, will→would, may→might. This is a standard backshift rule.
Why doesn't 'to swim' change?
Infinitives like 'to swim' express purpose or action generally and do not carry tense themselves, so they remain unchanged during reported speech transformation.