A Number of vs. The Number of
The Subject-Verb Agreement Illusion
How changing a single starting article completely flips your verb from plural to singular — and how to spot the trap instantly before the examiner catches you.
🗺️ Part 1: Deconstructing the Structural Formulas
Despite both phrases using a plural noun, they take completely opposite verb forms. The article that opens the phrase — a vs. the — determines everything.
Acts exactly like “many” or “several” — scales the group outward, making the focus plural.
Formula
A number of + Plural Noun + Plural Verb
Correct verb forms
Example
“A number of students are absent today.”
→ ‘A number of’ = many students (plural group acting)
Focuses on the single mathematical total or count — the unit itself is singular.
Formula
The number of + Plural Noun + Singular Verb
Correct verb forms
Example
“The number of students is increasing.”
→ ‘The number’ = one specific count (singular unit)
| Property | A number of | The number of |
|---|---|---|
| Verb form | Plural (are / have / do) | Singular (is / has / does) |
| Synonym | Many / Several | The total / The count |
| Sentence focus | The group itself | The numerical value |
| Article | Indefinite — a | Definite — the |
| Test trigger | Plural noun before verb | Long intervening phrase |
❌Part 2: The Examiner's Illusion
❌ Incorrect
“A number of candidates has filed objections against the mismatched exam answer keys.”
✅ Correct
“A number of candidates have filed objections against the mismatched exam answer keys.”
Trap Analysis
The singular verb ‘has’ sounds plausible because students subconsciously process “a number” as a single unit. The fix: mentally replace “A number of candidates” with “Many candidates”— the plural verb ‘have’ becomes immediately obvious. ‘A number of’ is always a synonym for ‘many’ and never takes a singular verb.
❌ Incorrect
“The number of student applications for the banking sector exams are increasing rapidly every year.”
✅ Correct
“The number of student applications for the banking sector exams is increasing rapidly every year.”
How the Examiner Hides the True Subject
Trap Analysis
The eye locks onto “applications”— the plural noun sitting directly before the verb — and the brain fires ‘are’ automatically. The examiner amplifies this with the long intervening phrase “for the banking sector exams”, which pushes the true subject “The number”far out of working memory. The fix: mentally strip everything between ‘The number’ and the verb — you’re left with “The number is”, which is unambiguously singular.
🧠 Part 3: Why Students Fall For It
When students read “The number of student applications…”, their eyes focus tightly on the plural word “applications” right before the verb. Their ear confirms “applications are” sounds correct. Examiners exploit this by using long descriptive prepositional phrases to distance the verb from the true subject.
👁️ Proximity Bias
The human eye defaults to the nearest noun when assigning verb agreement. Examiners always place a plural noun directly before the verb — exploiting the proximity instinct deliberately.
🔗 Intervening Phrase Camouflage
Long prepositional phrases ('for the banking sector exams', 'across all northern districts') act as interference — they push the true singular subject out of working memory before the verb arrives.
🔤 Article Invisibility
Articles are function words — the brain processes them in under 30ms and discards them as 'glue'. Most candidates don't consciously register whether they read 'a number' or 'the number', making the trap nearly invisible.
The Fix — Two Substitution Tests
Test 1 (A number of): Replace with “Many ___”. If the sentence still makes sense, use a plural verb. • Test 2 (The number of):Mentally strip the entire phrase from ‘of’ onward. If what remains is “The number [verb]”, the verb must be singular. These two mental substitutions work 100% of the time and take under three seconds.
📋 Part 4: Fill in the Blank — Singular or Plural?
Practice #1
A number of talented engineers from this institute ___ joined leading research laboratories.
Answer: “have”
'A number of' = many. The true subject is the plural group of engineers. 'Have' (plural) is required. The distractor 'engineers' right before the blank makes 'have' feel obvious — but the key is recognising 'A number of' as the trigger, not the noun itself.
Practice #2
The number of registered voters in the northern constituency ___ fallen sharply after the delimitation exercise.
Answer: “has”
'The number of' focuses on the singular count — the mathematical total. 'Has' (singular) is required. The long prepositional phrase 'in the northern constituency' distances the verb from 'The number', engineering a plural-verb illusion around 'voters'.
Practice #3
A number of complaints regarding the faulty products ___ been forwarded to the consumer forum.
Answer: “have”
'A number of' = several. The verb refers to the collective set of complaints — a plural group acting. 'Have been forwarded' is correct. Two plural nouns ('complaints', 'products') compound the distractor effect.
Practice #4
The number of seats available for the postgraduate programme ___ been reduced by the university board.
Answer: “has”
The sentence is about the singular total count of seats — a single numerical value being reduced. 'Has been reduced' is correct. The word 'seats' (plural) immediately before the verb is the deliberate trap.
📚 Related Grammar Guides
Subject-Verb Agreement — Chapter 1 Deep-Dive
'A number of' vs 'The number of' is Rule 4 in this full chapter — plus 9 other agreement rules and 10 MCQs.
Read →All Students vs All the Students
The article trap that parallels 'a number of' — both hinge on whether 'the' changes the meaning.
Read →Many a vs A Great Many — Singular vs Plural Trap
'Many a student was' vs 'a great many students were' — the article changes everything here too.
Read →🎯 Practice What You Learned
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