SG 17: Dangling/Misplaced Modifiers

What is a dangling or misplaced modifier?

• A word that describes a noun clearly

• A word that causes confusion about what it describes

• A word that is always at the end of a sentence

• A word that is used to connect two sentences

Which of the following sentences contains a dangling modifier?

• Sleeping during class, he learned little.

• When Alice was four, she and her family moved to Texas.

• Running down the hall, my jacket caught on a nail.

• Although eager to make the honor roll, Ted did not study.

How can a dangling modifier be corrected?

• By adding more adjectives

• By rewriting the sentence to make it clear

• By removing the modifier

• By changing the subject of the sentence

Identify the correct sentence.

• Driving on the beach, a rock hit my windshield.

• While I was driving on the beach, a rock hit my windshield.

• A rock hit my windshield, driving on the beach.

• Driving on the beach, my windshield was hit by a rock.

Which sentence is correct?

• To improve our wrestling team, new weight equipment was purchased by our school.

• New weight equipment was purchased by our school to improve our wrestling team.

• To improve our wrestling team, the school purchased new weight equipment.

• Our school purchased new weight equipment to improve our wrestling team.

What is the problem with the sentence: "Sleeping during class, his grades suffered"?

• It is too long

• It contains a dangling modifier

• It is a run-on sentence

• It lacks a subject

Choose the sentence with a misplaced modifier.

• Wearing only a thin jacket, Jason found the winter wind unbearable.

• Jason found the winter wind unbearable, wearing only a thin jacket.

• The winter wind was unbearable, wearing only a thin jacket.

• Wearing only a thin jacket, the winter wind was unbearable.

Which sentence is an example of a corrected modifier?

• While jogging down the street, a car nearly hit me.

• Jogging down the street, I was nearly hit by a car.

• A car nearly hit me while jogging down the street.

• While jogging down the street, I was nearly hit by a car.

What is the principle behind correcting dangling modifiers?

• To make sentences longer

• To ensure clarity in what the modifier describes

• To use more complex words

• To add more modifiers

Identify the incorrect sentence.

• Although eager to make the honor roll, Ted did not study.

• Although eager to make the honor roll, Ted’s grades were lower this semester.

• Ted did not study, although eager to make the honor roll.

• Ted’s grades were lower this semester, although eager to make the honor roll.