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The number of sticks is/are are 30. Which one is correct?

tchrist
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Anoop Kanyan
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1 Answers1

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The singular is is appropriate here, as it refers to the singular noun number. The phrase of sticks simply modifies the noun number. Structurally, the sentence is equivalent to The number is 30.

jdmc
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  • Hello jdmc. This question has been asked before on ELU; it's best to check by an on-site search before duplicating (especially basic) work. Yes, it's hard to know what questions are likely to be duplicates when you're new here. The answer is a lot. – Edwin Ashworth Feb 07 '15 at 19:51