MISPLACED & DANGLING MODIFIERS

A Grammar Focus for the English I E.O.C.

WHAT IS A MODIFIER? A MODIFIER is a word or group of

words that describe another word.

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

Misplaced modifiers cause confusion when in a sentence they are separated from the word(s) they are intended to modify.

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

(Wrong) After taking French for two years, I could understand spoken French when we took our trip to Europe easily.

The writer meant to say that she “could easily understand spoken French,” but a listener might think she was referring to the trip as being easy.

In this example, the word “EASILY” is our modifier. The problem is that the modifier is not near the word it should be describing.

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

A better sentence would be:

(Right) After taking French for two years, I could easily understand spoken French when we took our trip to Europe.

TWO TYPES OF MODIFIER MISTAKES:

1. MISPLACED MODIFIER: This is when the modifying words are in the wrong place; they are not near the words they describe.

EXAMPLE OF A MISPLACED MODIFIER

I saw a pink and purple house walking down the street. Based on how the above sentence is written, what image pops into your head when you read the above sentence?

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

If you read the sentence as it is written, you should have thought of a pink and purple house walking down the street. Does this seem logical and likely?

NO!

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

Ask yourself, WHO is walking? More than likely, the house IS NOT walking. So, how could the sentence below be REWRITTEN to make more logical sense?

I saw a pink and purple house walking down the street.Walking down the street, I saw a pink and purple house.

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

A good general rule to follow is to place single-word modifiers next to the word or words they modify (describe).

WHAT IS A DANGLING MODIFIER?

2. A DANGLING MODIFIER is when the modifying word or words are missing; here, you need to add in words to correct the sentence.

EXAMPLE OF A DANGLING MODIFIER

Skating across the pond, the ice was very slick.While I was skating across the pond, the ice was very slick.

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

Dangling Modifiers cause confusion when there is no specific subject in the sentence for them to modify, or the item they modify is not in the expected grammatical slot. They are often located at the beginning of the sentence, as in this example:

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

(Wrong) Although not finished, we left the meeting early to see a movie.

From the way this sentence is written, the people (we) are the ones “not yet finished.” On second thought, a listener or reader would probably realize that it must be the meeting that is not finished, which means this would be a better sentence:

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

(CORRECT) Although the meeting was not finished, we left early to see a movie.

REMEMBER THIS ….

To correct a MISPLACED MODIFER, you just need to move the modifying word or phrase next to the word that is supposed to be described.

To correct a DANGLING MODIFIER, you will need to add in a word or words in order to improve the clarity of the sentence.

• EXAMPLE:

• Loudly barking in the backyard, I was awakened by my dog. (INCORRECT)

• I was awakened by my dog loudly barking in the backyard. (CORRECT)

• Or

• I woke up because my dog was loudly barking in the backyard (CORRECT)

• 1. I gave my mom a picture of me in a wood frame.

• 2. Beeping and buzzing loudly, we were excited to

go to the video arcade.

• 3. While shopping at Arizona Mills, a sandstorm filled my car with dust.

• 4. Although exhausted, the ride was so much fun that we went again.

1. I gave my mom a wood-framed picture of me.

2. We were excited to go to the beeping and buzzing video arcade.

3. While I was shopping at Arizona Mills, a sandstorm filled my car.

4. The ride was so much fun that we went again, although we were exhausted.

• 5. The man was stopped for speeding in the blue sweater.

• 6. Joe promised to mow the lawn running out the door.

• 7. The initials were those of the lovers

carved on the tree.

• 8. To qualify for a loan, an application has to be submitted.

5. The man in the blue sweater was stopped for speeding.

6. Running out the door, Joe promised to mow the lawn 7. The initials carved on the tree were those of the lovers.

8. To qualify for a loan, you must submit an application.