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Rafi told Mary, "I am thinking of watching a film this weekend." The following reports the above statement in indirect speech: Rafi told Mary that he _______ of watching a film that weekend. A. thought B. is thinking C. am thinking D. was thinking

GATE 2023 · General Aptitude · Tenses · medium

Answer: The correct answer is D. was thinking — the past continuous form resulting from backshift of present continuous 'am thinking' when reported with past verb 'told'.

  1. Identify the tense in direct speech: Direct speech: 'I am thinking' — present continuous (am + V-ing).
  2. Apply tense backshift rule: Present continuous (am thinking) -> Past continuous (was thinking) under backshift triggered by past reporting verb 'told'.
  3. Confirm pronoun and match to options: 'I' changes to 'he'. The result: 'Rafi told Mary that he was thinking of watching a film that weekend.' Option A 'thought' would be backshift of simple past, not present continuous — so it is wrong here.