Misplaced/Dangling Modifier (17th September 2022)

Misplaced and Dangling Modifier

What will we learn today?

• What are modifiers?

• What are misplaced modifiers?

• What are dangling modifiers?

What are modifiers?

A modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that modifies—that is, gives information about—another word in the same sentence.

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A modifier can come in the form of an adjective, adverb, or a phrase.

Adjective Modifiers

For example, in the following sentence, the word "burger" is modified by the word "vegetarian":

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Example: I'm going to the Saturn Café for a vegetarian burger.

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The modifier "vegetarian" gives extra information about what kind of burger it is.

Adverb Modifier

A modifier can be an adjective (a word that modifies a noun, like "burger"), but it can also be an adverb (a word that modifies a verb):

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Example: The student carefully proofread her draft.

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The adverb "carefully" is the modifier in this example—it modifies the verb "proofread," giving important details about how the proofreading was conducted.

Phrase Modifiers

A modifier can even be a phrase or clause, as in the following example:

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Example: She studied in the library.

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Here, the phrase "in the library" gives us extra information about the verb, "studied."

What is a misplaced modifier?

• A misplaced modifier is a modifier that is in the wrong place. As a result, it appears to modify the wrong noun.

• The salesman tried to sell a car to a customer that was broken down. ❌

• The salesman tried to sell a broken-down car to a customer. ✔️

What is a misplaced modifier?

• Mrs. Harris hung the lovely student’s drawing on the wall. ❌

• Mrs. Harris hung the student’s lovely drawing on the wall. ✔️

What is a misplaced modifier?

• Let’s adopt the dog from the animal shelter with black spots. ❌

• Let’s adopt the dog with black spots from the animal shelter. ✔️

Open Ended

Correct the following sentence that has a misplaced modifier:

I took a nap and dreamt about a faraway castle on my blue couch.

Open Ended

Correct the following sentence that has a misplaced modifier:

Matthew found a book about prehistoric animals in the library.

Open Ended

Correct the following sentence that has a misplaced modifier:

The water refreshed us from the fountain.

Open Ended

Correct the following sentence that has a misplaced modifier:

Three men had to stop quickly while a goose crossed the road in a small car.

Open Ended

Correct the following sentence that has a misplaced modifier:

The woman wrote a play about two elephants in the red dress.

What is a dangling modifier?

• A dangling modifier modifies a noun or verb that never actually appears in the sentence.

• Expecting rain, the umbrella was propped up against the wall by Jayne. ❌

• Expecting rain, Jayne propped the umbrella against the wall. ✔️

What is a dangling modifier?

• Holding the mail in one hand, the door was locked. ❌

• Holding the mail in one hand, I realized that the door was locked. ✔️

What is a dangling modifier?

• After leaving the office, the cat jumped right in front of Howard and startled him. ❌

• After leaving the office, Howard was startled when a cat jumped right in front of him. ✔️

Open Ended

Correct the following sentence that has a dangling modifier:

At the age of six, my mother sang hymns to me.

Open Ended

Correct the following sentence that has a dangling modifier:

Feeling hot, the sweaters were taken off by us.

Open Ended

Correct the following sentence that has a dangling modifier:

Walking along the bridge, a ship suddenly appeared in our sight.

Open Ended

Correct the following sentence that has a dangling modifier:

Thirsty, the glass of water was swallowed in one gulp by Chloe.

Open Ended

Correct the following sentence that has a dangling modifier:

Resolving to study more, the textbooks seemed more interesting to me.