choose the correct option
Correct answer: D. There were a number of cases of diphtheria in the area
- A. There has been a number of cases of diphtheria in the area.
- B. There have been the number of cases of diphtheria in the area.
- C. There was a number of cases of diphtheria in the area.
- D. There were a number of cases of diphtheria in the area
Explanation
"There were" is the correct phrase to use when referring to a past time frame, indicating that multiple cases of diphtheria existed in the area at some point in the past.- "A number of" is an idiomatic expression that means "many" or "several", and it is used correctly in this sentence to indicate a plural noun phrase.
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Subject-verb agreement requires the verb to match the true subject in number and person, even when other words intervene. Questions cover collective nouns, compound subjects, indefinite pronouns, either and neither, relative clauses, quantities and inverted sentences, where proximity can falsely suggest the wrong verb.
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