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Wangqh2696122 Posted 13 years ago
Grammar
Tenses
Can you help me decide on the tense in the following sentence?
The number of historic building which _____ is increasing so rapidly that we must take some measures.
A. is being pulled down B. are being pulled down C. have been pulled down
The number of historic building which _____ is increasing so rapidly that we must take some measures.
A. is being pulled down B. are being pulled down C. have been pulled down
Top answer
First, which do you choose, wangqh? Also, you have made a small typing mistake in the original sentence. )
- First, which do you choose, wangqh?
- Also, you have made a small typing mistake in the original sentence.
- )
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3 Answers
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First, which do you choose, wangqh? Also, you have made a small typing mistake in the original sentence.
(Hint: there is a grammatical difference between 'a number of' and 'the number of'.)
(Hint: there is a grammatical difference between 'a number of' and 'the number of'.)
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The number of historic buildings which are being pulled down is increasing so rapidly that we must take some measures
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Your choice is common enough among native speakers, but many grammar books make the point that 'the number of' is singular (it represents a specific numeral) while 'a number of' is plural (it is a quantifier). From one on-line grammar site:
"A number of ..." usually requires a plural verb. In "A number
of employees were present", it's the employees who were present, not
"A number of ..." usually requires a plural verb. In "A number
of employees were present", it's the employees who were present, not
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