In this English grammar question on direct and indirect speech, choose the option that correctly reports the request: The beggar said to me, "Please give me something to eat."

Introduction / Context:
This question tests your understanding of how to report a polite request in indirect speech. The original sentence is spoken by a beggar asking for food. When changing it into indirect speech, you must know how to change the reporting verb, remove the word please correctly, and adjust pronouns without altering the meaning. Such request based questions are very common in English grammar tests on reported speech.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Direct sentence: The beggar said to me, "Please give me something to eat."
• Reporting verb: said to, with object me.
• The sentence contains the polite marker please.
• The pronoun me in the direct speech refers to the beggar.
• The request is for something to eat, not for money or another item.

Concept / Approach:
In reported speech, said to is often changed to requested when the sentence is clearly a request. The word please is usually dropped and its function is taken over by the new reporting verb or by using politely. The pronoun me in give me becomes him because the speaker, the beggar, is now referred to in the third person. The structure used for such indirect requests is requested someone to do something. Therefore, the correct reported form is The beggar requested me to give him something to eat.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify that the original sentence is a request, not just a statement. Step 2: Change the reporting verb said to into requested to show the nature of the speech act. Step 3: Remove the word please and replace it implicitly by the polite reporting verb requested. Step 4: Convert the structure give me something to eat into give him something to eat, changing the pronoun me to him. Step 5: Combine the elements into the pattern requested me to give him something to eat, which is a standard structure for reported requests.

Verification / Alternative check:
The final sentence is: The beggar requested me to give him something to eat. It clearly shows who is requesting, who is being requested, and what is being requested. It does not use please, but the politeness is conveyed through the verb requested. The pronouns and the object of the request are correctly adjusted, so the sentence is an accurate reported version of the original direct speech.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option B is close in meaning but uses a that clause structure, which is less common in exam keys for this type of imperative based request.
Option C is incorrect because something for eating is an unnatural expression in this context.
Option D is incorrect because begged me that I should give is wordy and not the usual concise pattern for reporting requests.
Option E is incorrect because said that I should give him something to eat does not clearly mark the original sentence as a polite request with the same force as requested does.

Common Pitfalls:
Students sometimes leave the word please in the reported clause, which is not wrong but is often avoided by using a more precise reporting verb. Another issue is failing to convert said to into a verb that reflects the true nature of the utterance, such as requested, begged, or asked. Pronoun changes can also be confusing, especially when me is used in two different roles. Always identify the speech act type first and then choose a reporting verb and structure that match it well.

Final Answer:
The beggar requested me to give him something to eat.