In this reported speech question on English grammar, a sentence in direct speech describes finishing work before someone leaves a place. Out of the four alternatives, select the option that best expresses the same idea in indirect speech: My brother said, "I will have finished my work by the time you leave from this place."

Introduction / Context:
This question tests your understanding of how to report a future perfect construction combined with a time clause. In the original direct speech, the brother promises that his work will be finished before another person leaves "this place". In reported speech, we need to show future in the past and adjust both the time clause and the reference to the place. Such sentences require careful handling of verb forms and pronouns so that the sequence of tenses remains logical and the meaning stays unchanged.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The reporting verb "said" is in the past tense.
• The quoted clause uses the future perfect form "will have finished".
• The time clause "by the time you leave from this place" refers to a future leaving action.
• The speaker is "my brother", and the listener is "you", so pronouns may need to change to "he" and "we".
• The demonstrative "this place" refers to a location that will be mentioned from a different point of view in reported speech.

Concept / Approach:
When reporting future perfect tense after a past reporting verb, "will have finished" normally changes to "would have finished". The time clause "by the time you leave" needs to be made consistent with the new viewpoint, so "you leave" often becomes "we left" if the original "you" includes the reporter. The reference "this place" changes to "that place" in reported speech. We remove comma and quotation marks, introduce the reported clause with "that", and keep the meaning that the work will already be complete before the leaving action takes place.

Step-by-Step Solution:
First, join the reporting and reported clauses by removing the comma and quotation marks and adding "that". Second, change the pronoun "I" to "he" to refer correctly to "my brother". Third, convert "will have finished" to "would have finished" to express future in the past. Fourth, change the time clause "by the time you leave from this place" to "by the time we left from that place", aligning pronouns and place with the reporter's perspective. Fifth, ensure that the completed action (finishing work) still clearly occurs before the leaving action in the reported sentence.

Verification / Alternative check:
The sentence "My brother said that he would have finished his work by the time we left from that place" expresses that at some earlier time your brother promised the work would be done before the group left. The form "would have finished" is the correct reported version of "will have finished". The clause "by the time we left from that place" matches the time reference and the change in viewpoint. Reading the sentence as a whole, the sequence of tenses and the logical relationship between finishing the work and leaving the place are both preserved.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A mixes "would have finished" with "we are leaving", which combines a future in the past with a present progressive form and sounds incorrect. Option B uses "were leaving", which suggests an ongoing action and does not reflect the completed nature of the leaving that the brother had in mind. Option C uses "says" instead of "said", which changes the time of reporting and does not match the original structure, and also creates tense confusion in the time clause. Only option D correctly uses "would have finished" and "we left from that place" to show two past-related future events with the correct sequence.

Common Pitfalls:
Learners often struggle with future perfect forms in reported speech, sometimes simplifying them to a basic past tense and losing the nuance of completion before another action. Another common problem is leaving the time clause unchanged, which can result in conflicting tenses or an unclear time relationship. Confusion about pronouns in complex time clauses is also frequent. A good technique is to identify the main verb phrase, the time clause, and every pronoun separately, and then apply the backshift and point-of-view changes step by step.

Final Answer:
The option that correctly converts the given direct sentence into reported speech is: My brother said that he would have finished his work by the time we left from that place.