Sentence improvement (sequence of tenses) — Choose the form that correctly maintains tense agreement in: ‘‘John had told me that he hasn’t done it yet.’’ Make the reported clause and reporting verb consistent.

Given sentence‘‘John had told me that he hasn't done it yet.’’

Concept/ApproachKeep the present relevance of ‘‘hasn't done it yet’’ by using a present reporting verb. Present perfect (‘‘hasn't done’’) pairs naturally with present reporting (‘‘tells’’). Alternatively, a full backshift would be ‘‘told … hadn't done’’; however, among the choices the best fix is to change the reporting verb.

Option analysisA: told — Would require ‘‘hadn't done it yet’’ for consistency; not offered together.B: tells — Correct: ‘‘John tells me that he hasn't done it yet.’’C: was telling — Progressive past mismatches the continuing present relevance in the that-clause.D: No improvement — Original mixes past perfect with present perfect awkwardly.

Final Answertells