Misplaced and dangling modifiers Modifiers Adjectives and adjective

Misplaced and dangling modifiers

Modifiers: • • Adjectives and adjective phrases Adverbs and adverb phrases Prepositional phrases Dependent clauses Infinitive phrases Participial phrases And others

Modifiers: • • A red car; a quickly-moving train Soon afterward, they cooked dinner. We walked to the store. We arrived after the crowds had left. We all helped to push the stalled car. We finally finished, helped by Sally. And others

Misplaced modifiers • Misplaced modifiers are correct as modifiers, but their placement in a sentence can lead to confusion about what specifically is being modified. • Misplaced modifiers can usually be fixed easily by moving parts of a sentence around.

Misplaced modifiers • [incorrect] On her way home, Sally found a gold man’s watch. • [Corrected] On her way home, Sally found a man’s gold watch. • Note: the adjective “gold” should be placed as close as possible to the noun it modifies.

Misplaced modifiers • [incorrect] Sally found a dog on her way home. • Problem: who was “on her way home, ” the dog or Sally? • Solution: place all modifiers as close as possible to that which they modify.

Misplaced modifiers • [incorrect] Sally found a dog on her way home. • [better] On her way home, Sally found a dog. • [better] As the dog was on her way home, Sally found her. ** This kind of misplaced modifier is known as a squinting modifier, a modifier that might be modifying one of two (or more) things. Is “on her way home” referring to Sally or the dog? As written, it could be either one.

Misplaced modifiers What’s the difference? – I nearly won $3, 000. – I won nearly $3, 000. This is why it is important to have modifiers in their proper place!

Dangling modifiers • Dangling modifiers are modifiers which seem to modify nothing in particular, or are clearly modifying the wrong thing. • Sentences containing dangling modifiers usually require a reconstruction of the sentence, taking words out, moving words around, or adding new words in.

Dangling modifiers • [incorrect] Looking west, the tornado closed in on the town. • There are only two nouns in this sentence: “tornado” and “town. ” Neither of these nouns are capable of “looking west. ”

Dangling modifiers • [incorrect] Looking west, the tornado closed in on the town. • [corrected] Looking west, he saw the tornado closing in on the town. • Note: as mentioned previously, dangling modifiers usually require more than just moving words around.

Dangling modifiers What’s the problem here? – Running for the bus, my book fell into the mud.