Report the dialogue between a vendor and his customer, by completing the sentence:
Vendor: It is nice to see you, Sir!
Customer: Yes, indeed! Unlike last month, I have been away for quite some time this month.
The vendor greeted his customer respectfully and mentioned that he was pleased to see him. The customer answered in the affirmative and explained that ______________________
Answer:
The vendor greeted his customer respectfully and mentioned that he was pleased to see him. The customer answered in the affirmative and explained that he had been away for quite some time that month.
Step-by-step explanation by Teachoo:
The reporting verbs are greeted, mentioned, answered, and explained, which are already in the past tense.
- The pronouns "you" and "I" change to "he" and "his" , according to the context.
- The verb "have" changes from present perfect tense to past perfect tense "had"
- The word "this" changes to "that" , because it indicates distance in indirect speech.
Therefore, the correct way to complete the sentence is he had been away for quite some time that month.
