Question

The number of the people invited ________ fifty, but a number of them ________ absent for different reasons.

A. are; isB. is; areC. is; isD. are; are

Answer

B

【解析】

试题分析：考查主谓一致。The number of...作主语，后面的谓语动词用单数形式；a number of...作主语，后面的谓语动词用复数形式，故选B。句意：被邀请的人的数目是50，但是很多因为各种原因而缺席。

【名师点睛】

1.“A number of”的意思是“若干”或“许多”，相当于some或a lot of，和复数名词连用。当它出现在主语前时，谓语动词和主语搭配。必要时，还可以加上形容词great，large，small，good等。例如：

A number of highly qualified scholars have worked in Singapore.

A great number of junior college graduates opt for business administration courses.

2.“The number of”和“a number of”一样，跟在后头的名词也是复数的，不同的是这里的主语是单数的，主语是the number，不是它后面的复数名词，谓语动词必须和the number呼应，表示“……的数量”。如：

The number of undergraduates has increased over the years.

The number of new houses is unable to cope with the ever-growing population.

考点：考查主谓一致