Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

What are they, Annie? My English teacher started to tell about them at school, but she said they could be confusing, so I quit listening. Now they're going to be on a test, so I guess I'd better learn them. What's a modifier anyway? That's easy, Jay. A modifier adds to something... like these dress-up clothes add to, or modify, my appearance. Yeah, but what are the "grammar" kinds of modifiers that can get "dangling" or "misplaced"? Dougie, do you know? Yeah, Jay; by modifiers they mean all those phrases you learn. You have to write them real close to the word they describe, or talk about. That's all!

Definitions: Modifiers: Participial Phrases and Prepositional Phrases Example: Participial phrases start with a word ending in -ing or -ed. (Putting on her beads, the little girl got dressed.) (Dressed in her mother's clothes, Annie walked the runway.) Prepositional phrases start with a preposition and end with a noun or pronoun. (With her pretty necklace, Annie looked charming.) Modifies: Describes, adds to the meaning of, tells about Example: Walking in her mother's shoes, Annie modeled her dress-up outfit. (The participial phrase describes Annie.) Misplaced: When a modifier (phrase) is too far away from the word it modifies Example: (Walking unsteadily in high heels, the dog was scared of Annie.) (The noun Annie is too far away from the participial phrase. It looks as if the dog is the one "walking unsteadily in high heels.") Dangling: When a modifier (phrase) doesn't have an appropriate word to modify Example: (Adjusting her mother's hat on her head, it was an adorable picture.) (This doesn't have any noun at all that the participial phrase can modify. Who is "adjusting her mother's hat on her head"? We need the noun Annie in this sentence, but it has been left out. This is a "dangling" modifier. The sentence should have been written, "Adjusting her mother's hat on her head, Annie looked adorable.")
Wow. So it is just a couple of phrases: prepositional and participial. OK. And they just have to be in the right place, near what they modify. Right? Oh... and they need to have something in there to modify! What if I wrote this: Windsurfing on a lake in Arizona, I saw a beautiful green iguana. Yeah, that's great! Just don't write one like this: I saw a beautiful green iguana, windsurfing on a lake in Arizona. Oh, do you recycle? You should, you know....

Hey, Kyle, that looks like fun. I heard you went kayaking yesterday. Did you see any wildlife on the riverbank? I saw a squirrel, kayaking through the whitewater rapids in my red kayak and yellow helmet. Man, Kyle has got some bad misplaced modifier problems!

How about me? Is this a good one? On the inside of the garbage can, Jason hid from Tracy. Yes, but Jason, you should not play in a garbage can. Filled with germs, the garbage can is a bad choice of play areas. I know -- let's play Quiz Bowl. Let's try to answer questions that test our knowledge of misplaced and dangling modifiers. I love pizza, but I love Quiz Bowl even more!

Quiz Bowl Directions: In the sentences below, find and circle the word you think the underlined modifier should modify. If the sentence has a misplaced or dangling modifier, rewrite it on the line provided. Examples: Running from the swarm of bees, Patti jumped in the water. Excited about the vacation to Mexico, it was hard to stay focused. Excited about the vacation to Mexico, Allie found it hard to stay focused. 1. Pulling out his loose tooth, Isaac showed it to the class. ______________________________________________________________________ 2. Notified by the award committee, the academic team walked to the stage. ______________________________________________________________________ 3. I saw my neighbor mowing the grass at 10:00 at night. ______________________________________________________________________ 4. At the mall instead of at school, my mother saw Crystal hanging out. ______________________________________________________________________ 5. I read about the 90-year-old lady who ran a marathon in my newspaper. ______________________________________________________________________ 2

6. Alicia, smiling with appreciation, accepted the valentine candy from James. ______________________________________________________________________ 7. Joshua carefully placed his sleeping bag in the middle of the tent. ______________________________________________________________________ 8. Reading the chapter for the second time, the plot finally became clear. ______________________________________________________________________ 9. Grandpa enjoyed watching Pauly fishing through his kitchen window. ______________________________________________________________________ 10. Stealing the sunflower seeds from the birdfeeder, Misty took a picture of the clever squirrel. ______________________________________________________________________ Here is another way to test your ability to use modifiers correctly: 11. Turning the corner, the view was quite different to Ramona. What is the best way, if any, to revise the above sentence? A Turning the corner, Ramona saw a view that was quite different. B Turning the corner, a quite different view was seen by Ramona. C Ramona saw quite a different view, turning the corner. D No change. 12. Stranded at the bus stop, Arlo waited hours for his cousin to pick him up. What is the best way, if any, to revise the above sentence? A Stranded at the bus stop, hours passed before Arlo's cousin picked him up. B Stranded at the bus stop, Arlo's cousin picked Arlo up after several hours. C Stranded at the bus stop, it was several hours before Arlo's cousin could pick him up. D No change. Now, you rewrite this one: 13. Frosted with creamy white chocolate icing, the waiters served the magnificent sixlayer wedding cake. What is the best way, if any, to revise the above sentence? ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________