In this reported speech question, you are given the indirect sentence They told us that they had waited at the station for a long time and asked to select the direct speech version that correctly expresses the same meaning, including the appropriate tense and time reference. Choose the option that best represents what they originally said.

Introduction / Context:
This question tests the ability to convert from indirect speech back into direct speech while keeping the sequence of tenses correct. The indirect sentence They told us that they had waited at the station for a long time describes a past report about a completed action in the past. To find the original direct speech, you must reason backwards and decide which tense they most likely used when they spoke, before the reporter changed it to the past perfect form had waited.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Reporting clause: They told us.
• Reported clause in indirect speech: that they had waited at the station for a long time.
• The action of waiting at the station was completed before the time of reporting.
• The options give different direct speech sentences with various tenses.

Concept / Approach:
When converting from direct to indirect speech with a past reporting verb such as told, English often shifts the tense one step back in time. Simple past in the original direct sentence usually becomes past perfect in the reported clause. Therefore, had waited in indirect speech probably comes from waited in direct speech. In this context, continuous forms such as had been waiting or are waiting would imply a different aspect. Our approach is to find the direct speech sentence whose simple past form would naturally be reported as past perfect after the verb told.

Step-by-Step Solution:
First, note that the reporting verb is in the simple past, told, which usually triggers backshifting of tenses in indirect speech. Second, observe that the reported action is expressed in the past perfect, had waited, in the indirect sentence. Third, remember that past perfect in reported speech commonly corresponds to simple past in the original direct speech. Fourth, examine the options and identify the one that uses simple past waited in the reported clause. Fifth, select They told us "We waited at the station for a long time". as the direct speech that would normally be changed to They told us that they had waited at the station for a long time.

Verification / Alternative check:
To verify, you can apply the usual rules of conversion. Start from the direct sentence We waited at the station for a long time. Prepend the reporting clause They told us and then change it to indirect speech by replacing the first person pronoun we with they and keeping at the station for a long time. Now shift the tense from waited to had waited because the reporting verb told is in the past. You obtain They told us that they had waited at the station for a long time, which matches the given indirect sentence exactly, confirming that option A is the correct original form.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option B, with had been waiting, would usually be reported as They told us that they had been waiting at the station for a long time, which does not match the given sentence, where only had waited is used.

Option C, with are waiting, is present continuous and would normally be reported as were waiting, not had waited, so it does not align with the indirect form here.

Option D, with wait, uses simple present, which would generally be reported as waited and not had waited, and in context sounds strange because waiting for a long time is clearly a completed past action.

Common Pitfalls:
Learners often mix up which tense corresponds to which after backshift in reported speech, especially between past simple and past perfect or between continuous and non continuous forms. Another pitfall is ignoring the aspect of the action and selecting a continuous tense even when the reported sentence clearly marks a completed action. Practising the standard conversion charts for direct and indirect speech helps avoid these errors and makes such questions easier to handle.

Final Answer:
The direct speech sentence that naturally converts to the given indirect sentence is They told us "We waited at the station for a long time".