Sentence Skills

Misplaced & Dangling

Modifiers
English Skills for Academic Studies
John Langan
(pp 331-339)
Modifiers
• What is a modifier?

A modifier is a word or a group of words

that give additional information about
another word, often by describing or
classifying it, or by restricting its meaning.
Misplaced Modifiers
• When building a sentence, avoid needless
separation of related parts of the
sentence.

A misplaced modifier is positioned in a

sentence so that it is unclear which word,
phrase, or clause is being modified.
Misplaced Modifiers
• Modifiers such as almost
almost,, only
only,, just
just,, even
even,,
hardly
hardly,, nearly,
nearly and merely,
merely should be placed
immediately before the words they modify.
– Example:
My
My mother
mother only
only works
works on
on Saturdays
Saturdays and and
Sundays.
Sundays.
• This sentence says that, on Saturdays and
Sundays, the mother only works -- she does
not eat, sleep, or talk.
 Misplaced Modifiers
We must place the modifier in the right position, so
that the sentence can be clearly understood.

Ex.: My mother only works on Saturdays and

Sundays.
Revised: My mother works only on Saturdays
and Sundays.
Misplaced Modifiers
Example…..
Her job is to file newspaper
articles about handgun use
A modifying in the library.
phrase should
clearly indicate
what the phrase Revised…..
modifies. Her job in the library is to
file newspaper articles
about handgun use.
 Modifying Clauses
Modifying
Modifyingclauses
clausesshould
shouldbe
be
placed
placednear
nearthe
thewords
wordsthey
theymodify.
modify.

Revised…..
Revised…..
Example…..
Example….. Beforethe
Before theclass
class
Thelibrarian
The librarianexplains
explains
begins,the
begins, thelibrarian
librarian
howthey
how theyuse
usethe
the
explains
explains
computerto
computer todo
doresearch
research
howthey
how theyuse
usethe
the
beforethe
before theclass
class
computerto
computer to
begins.
begins. doresearch.
do research.
Dangling Modifiers
A dangling modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that
does not modify any element in a sentence.
• Example: • What is the subject of the
Researching on sentence?
the Internet, many • If “many facts” is the
facts are easily subject, then who is
obtained for the “researching on the
Internet”?
report.
 Dangling Modifiers
• Revised: • “We” is the
Researching on subject, so we are
the internet, we researching on the
easily found internet.
many facts for
the report.
 Dangling Modifiers
Example: • What is the subject of
Because of going to the sentence?
many parties, my • If “term paper” is the
term paper was subject, then who is
late. “going to many parties”?
 Dangling Modifiers
• Revised:
Because of going to many parties,
I handed in my term paper late.
 Misplaced and Dangling
Modifiers
Homework and Revision
1. Study the diagrammatic
presentation on “How to Identify
and Correct Misplaced Modifiers
and Dangling Modifiers”.
2. Complete Worksheet 11 & 12 of the
Study Guide.