问题
选择题
The number of people invited ____________ fifty, but a number of them __________ absent for different reasons.
A．were; was
B．was; was
C．was; were
D．were; were
答案
答案：C
考查固定结构. the number of…的数量，作主语时，谓语动词用单数；a number of许多，大量修饰可数名词复数，谓语动词用复数。所以C正确。