Misplaced and Dangling
Modifiers
“Life is a promise; fulfill it.”
Mother Theresa
•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•5/28/2015
•1
To begin with,
can anyone define modifier?
A modifier is a word, phrase, or clause
that describes or changes the meaning of
another word, phrase or clause in some
way.
 A misplaced modifier means that there
is a separation of space between the
word, phrase, or clause and the modifier.
 When a modifier is misplaced, your
meaning gets really fuzzy.

•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•2
Some examples of modifiers in action.
The tall man with the suntan sat under
the palm tree.
 In this sentence we have two modifiers:
tall and with the suntan.
 The sentence as it is written makes
perfect sense; however, consider the
sentence on the next slide.

•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•3
Example of misplaced modifier
The tall man sat under the palm tree with the
suntan.
 If you read this sentence quickly, it seems to
make sense; but when you read it slowly, you
might ask yourself, can a palm tree have a
suntan? The answer is no, of course.


This is an example of a misplaced modifier. The
modifier is in the wrong place and makes the
sentence confusing. Remember the modifier
should always come close to what it modifies.
•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•4
Basic Rule:
Modifiers
are like teenagers:
they fall in love with whatever
they're next to. Make sure
they're next to something they
ought to modify!
•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•5
Consider this example:

The lady with three legs bought a piano.
To correct follow these steps.
 One, find the modifier.
 Two, check if it makes sense where it is
 Three, if it seems to be misplaced, find
it’s true place.

•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•6

Could you correct it?
Correction:
 The lady bought a piano with three legs.
 (The incorrect sentence made it seem as
if the lady had three legs.)

•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•7
I think you now have a better idea of what is a misplaced
modifier. Let’s practice. Remember the three steps.
I saw a mouse going to our class meeting.
 Flying around the room, I saw two
mockingbirds.
 Climbing a tree the other day, I saw a
monkey at the zoo.
 I bought a puppy for my brother with a
cute little tail.
 A cow is wanted by a farmer weighing
about 1500 pounds.

•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•8
Corrections:

Going to our class meeting, I saw a mouse.

I saw two mockingbirds flying around the room.

The other day I saw a monkey climbing a tree at the
zoo.

I bought a puppy with a cute little tail for my brother.

A cow weighing about 1500 pounds is wanted by a
farmer.
•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•9
More practice





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I returned the kitty to my Mom which had been
missing for a couple of days.
I relaxed on the mat wearing my Hawaiian shirt
and shorts.
I replaced a tile on the floor that was loose.
I was bathing my dog while singing a beautiful
melody.
Jerry stepped on the snake without any shoes
on.
I bought the used television from a friend with a
broken antennae.
•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•10
Corrections:






I returned the kitty which had been missing for
a couple of days to my Mom.
Wearing my Hawaiian shirt and shorts,I relaxed
on the mat.
I replaced a tile that was loose on the floor.
While singing a beautiful melody, I was bathing
my.
Without any shoes on, Jerry stepped on the
snake.
I bought the used television with a broken
antennae from a friend.
•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•11
Assignment (Choose ONE):
Carlos returned the hot dog to the Circle K
that was rotten.
 I love the donuts from 7-11 with the vanilla
frosting.
 My cousin told me how to get to her
business in a telegram.
 Alex visited the hospital, still worn out from
work.
 The woman by the pool with the bright Tshirt always drank water.

•Created by José J. González, Jr.
•Spring 2002
•12