In Numbers^x, Invitations^x, Singular verbs^x

YoHf wrote: Diamondrg wrote: "a number of" means "several" Several number of invitations, then? That makes no sense to me. Diamondrg has hit the nail on the head. It makes no sense because your are not substituting correctly. a number of = several. a number of...

After "a number of..." we normally use a plural verb, e.g. - "A number of questions were asked." (Unit 79 'Oxford Practice Grammar') - "A number of us are worried about it." (Page 61 Swan's 'How English Works') That site(*) you mentioned, Inchoateknowledge, in another posting gives an...