Sitting in the dentists chair, the sound ofthe drill made larry sweat. Dangling modifiers definition of dangling modifiers. It is also called a dangling participle, hanging modifier, floater, floating modifier, or misrelated participle. Dangling modifiers other times we write descriptive phrases that point to or modify words that are not clearly stated in our sentences, making our sentences illogical.
This is true with dangling modifiers and other problematic modifiers. Grammar girls quick and dirty tips for better writing mignon. Having learned french in just three months, paul was as happy as he could be. Jan 01, 2008 to the delight of word nerds everywhere, grammar girl s quick and dirty tips for better writing came out yesterday. I will say, in order to make sure our writing is clear and coherent, i am going to show you how to recognize dangling and misplaced modifiers by using the skill of editing your sentences and the strategy of using examples of incorrect and revised sentences. Click download or read online button to get my grammar and i or should that be me book now. Having trouble sleeping, the tv helps me get through the night.
A correct version would besleepy, i crawled into the comfy bed. On the other hand, if a modifier is used incorrectly, the meaning of the sentence can become blurred or distorted. To make sure your modifiers give your readers the right message, read your sentences aloud or share them with someone you trust. Also, knowing about dangling modifiers allows you to tell your boss or your mates that theyve used a dangling modifier, which surely is a win in anyones book. Im not concerned about dangling prepositions or split infinitives, but my god, it gets to. My life would be less frustrating if everyone read this book. Dangling modifiers can make the meaning of the sentence unclear, so they should be avoided. Often, dangling modifiers suggest to what they refer, but do not specifically name it. Dolger discovered an ancient mayan civilization using astronavigation. Dangling modifiers cause the sentence to lack coherence. Otherwise, the modifier is said to be dangling, and the sentence takes on an unintended meaning.
Rearrange a sentence to correct a dangling modifier with help from a writer and english. I can be a little annoyingly pedantic when it comes to grammar and usage. On july 20, 1969, american astronauts neil armstrong and edwin buzz aldrin landed on the moon, watched by nearly a fifth of the worlds population. Watched by nearly a fifth of the worlds population, american astronauts neil armstrong and edwin buzz aldrin landed on the moon on july 20, 1969. May 18, 2007 mignon fogarty is the founder of quick and dirty tips and the author of seven books on language, including the new york times bestseller grammar girl s quick and dirty tips for better writing. The page is still under construction and i will be adding to this website over the term. If either of these errors occurs, readers can no longer read smoothly. Im not concerned about dangling prepositions or split infinitives, but my god, it gets to me when people misuse affect and effect, comma splice, or think that e.
Walking back from the bar, my wallet fell out of my pocket. Think of modifiers as arrows and the words they describe as bullseyes. Recognize the following types of dangling modifiers and their corrections. When a modifier is ambiguously or illogically modifying a word, we consider it a misplaced modifier. The two common types of modifier errors are called misplaced modifiers and dangling modifiers. Dangling and misplaced modifiers interactive for 8th 10th. Misplacedanddanglingmodifiers 1 misplaced and dangling modifiers a misplaced modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that is improperly separated from the word or clause it modifies or describes. In the second sentence, it is not the table that arrived late, but the speaker, so this is a dangling modifier. While trying to type an important email, my cat kept begging me for food.
Because modifiers often appear in introductory clauses phrases that appear before the main clause of a sentence, dangling modifiers are most commonly found in this part of the sentence. A runaway hit and sunday times bestseller, my grammar and i has continued to grow in popularity, becoming the goto guide for grammar. Bloodied and bruised, the boxing match proved too much. Remember that most modifiers come as close to their targets as possible. Grammar girls qdt for better writing quick and dirty tips. Like most writing techniques, modifiers can be brilliant when used correctly and effectively. A dangling modifier fails to refer logically to any word in the sentence. Unlike a misplaced modifier, a dangling modifier cannot be corrected by simply moving it to a different place in a sentence. Young scholars identify misplaced and dangling modifiers and correct these errors in their writing.
They create illustrations to match the misplace and dangling modifiers. Pdf learning proper grammar and usage rules for the english language. The dangling modifiers in the first and third sentences are prepositional phrases acting as adjuncts, which tend to allow some flexibility as to their position in a sentence. Unless the match was bloodied, this is a dangling modifier with no noun to attach itself to.
May 09, 2016 how about a oneword dangling modifier. This could be repaired by using we found that the table had been taken. The alleged dangler in the second sentence is nonfinite clause headed by a to infinitival, to examine. Jun 21, 2019 a dangling modifier is a word or phrase often a participle or participial phrase that doesnt actually modify the word its intended to modify. Here follow several examples of dangling modifiers and how to fix them. See more ideas about teaching grammar, grammar and punctuation and middle school english. Because of this separation, the meaning of the sentence is often awkward, ridiculous, illogical, or confusing. Grammar girls quick and dirty tips for better writing by mignon fogarty. It is also called a dangling participle, hanging modifier, floater, floating modifier, or misrelated. Practice grammar skills in this online interactive instructional activity. The modifier, using astronavigation, is unclear in this sentence. A modifier a word or phrase that qualifies the meaning of another element in a sentence. In each case, see if you can explain both the intended meaning and the unintended meaning.
The participial phrase doesnt have to be at the beginning of a sentence, but that is the place where its. Grammar girls quick and dirty tips for better writing by. A dangling modifier is a phrase or clause that modifies a word not clearly. The resulting sentence can be unclear and may even be unintentionally humorous. Refer to discovery, 324327, for additional practice. Mignon fogarty, host of the awardwinning grammar girl podcast 2. Modifiers grammar academic guides at walden university.
To the delight of word nerds everywhere, grammar girl s quick and dirty tips for better writing came out yesterday. This grammar tip describes dangling modifiers and offers tips on how to find thembefore your readers do. The difference is the deep check button is capable of detecting even more difficulttospot mistakes, such as runon sentences or dangling modifiers, and up to ten times more mistakes than popular word processors. This dangling modifiers lesson plan is suitable for 9th 10th grade. For example, in walking to college on a subzero morning, my left ear became frozen, the underlined phrase modifies my left ear. While participial phrases are the most common dangling modifiers, other modifiers, including regular adjectives, can dangle as well. Pdf text batch modifier a pdf text replace is an affordable pdf text modifier program. She is an inductee in the podcasting hall of fame, and the show is a fivetime winner of best education podcast in the podcast awards. For example, in the following sentence, the word burger is modified by the word vegetarian. Dangling modifiers, or misplaced modifiers, are words, phrases or clauses where it is unclear which element of the sentence they are modifying, because they could either be modifying the subject or object. Online sensation grammar girl makes grammar fun and easy in this new york. Check your answers with the interactive version of the exercise. When there is nothing that the word, phrase, or clause can modify, the modifier is said to dangle. A modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that modifiesthat is, gives information aboutanother word in the same sentence.
Sometimes writers use modifiers incorrectly, leading to strange and unintentionally humorous sentences. The modifying phrase having finished the assignment has nothing to modify. Having finished the assignment, the tv was turned on. Having learned spanish in just three months, the stay in mexico was a success. Rollerblading frantically to keep up with the others, the hill proved too steep for manuel, and he fell to the ground. Dangling modifiers 2 identifying dangling modifiers level.
It provides a useful formula for using a modifying phrase to ensure strong sentence construction. How to solve the mysteries of weak writing looks at all the causes of bad writing and how to repair them and revise them. Editing our writing for dangling modifiers betterlesson. Notwithstanding what some grammarians think, we think that using a dangling modifier will tell your grammarsavvy readers that youre not a clear thinker. This software enables you to search one or multiple words andor phrases within arbitrary number of pdf files and then replace them with other words you define.
A modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that clarifies or describes another word, phrase, or clause. Dangling modifiers are a common fiction writing mistake. Determine whether the sentences below contain misplaced or dangling modifiers. This video explains what dangling modifiers are and, more importantly, how to avoid them.
One of the first grammar topics i wrote about at this. Jul 14, 2014 this video explains what dangling modifiers are and, more importantly, how to avoid them. Jun 19, 2010 dangling modifiers are a common fiction writing mistake. Oct 20, 2014 while dangling modifiers often result in sentences that cause a giggle, they also muddle a persons writing and make the writers meaning unclear. The following is an example of the most severe and obvious problem with a dangling modifier. Modifiers ehb 2009 dangling modifiers modifying phrases must have a word to modify. Dangling modifiers a modifier that starts a sentence must be followed right away by the word that it describes. Hoping to garner favor, my parents were sadly unimpressed with the gift.
Mignon fogarty is the founder of quick and dirty tips and the author of seven books on language, including the new york times bestseller grammar girls quick and dirty tips for better writing. In this edition, page numbers are just like the physical edition. The good news is, theyre easy to identify and quite easy to fix. Its clear in the second sentence that she was riding playfully, rather than laughing. English grammar exercise dangling modifiers 2 identifying. This dangling and misplaced modifiers interactive is suitable for 8th 10th grade. Because he was so protective, olivers car had an overly elaborate security. Grammarcheck users are eligible for a 20% discount on new subscriptions and renewals if they sign up here. Make sure that youre not dangling your modifiers throughout your novel. The girl who was playfully riding the pony laughed at the puppies. Swbat learn what dangling modifier is in order to correct it in their own writing.
It was sticking close to the modifier so you couldnt miss it. English grammar exercise dangling modifiers 1 identifying. In a dangling modifier situation, the modifier is placed near the wrong word. The phrase is therefore left dangling hanging loosely. A dangling modifier is an introductory word groupparticiple, gerund, infinitive, or elliptical clausethat does not refer logically to the noun or pronoun that follows it. In grammar, a dangling modifier or misplaced modifier is a word or phrase that modifies a clause in an ambiguous manner, because it can potentially apply to either the subject or the object of the clause. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want.
Advanced choose whether each of the following sentences is correct, or whether it has a dangling modifier. How to eliminate dangling modifiers from your writing. Oct 28, 2012 dangling modifiers a modifier that starts a sentence must be followed right away by the word that it describes. Grammar girls quick and dirty tips for better writing. Notwithstanding what some grammarians think, we think that using a dangling modifier will tell your grammar savvy readers that youre not a clear thinker. Fixing misplaced modifiers rearranging sentence parts will often fix a misplaced modifier.
The children attended the public school wearing uniforms. Seventh grade lesson editing our writing for dangling modifiers. Online sensation grammar girl makes grammar fun and easy in her new york. A dangling modifier is a phrase or clause that does not hook up to any other word or phrase in the sentence. Dangling modifiers are considered stylistically poor by most style guides. You can order a copy of grammar girls quick and dirty tips for better writing in. Pdf learning proper grammar and usage rules for the english language can be a complex and confusing task which can often end in frustration. A dangling participle modifies an unintended subject. Unlike many other students, jim didnt have any problems with his teachers. Mignon fogarty is the founder of quick and dirty tips and the author of seven books on language, including the new york times bestseller grammar girl s quick and dirty tips for better writing. Nguyen returned her perfect calculus test with an eartoear grin. Fortunately, correcting them is a simple matter, and the result is writing thats more concise and easier to read. In some cases, a dangling modifier refers to a word that doesnt even appear in the sentence. Links include syllabus, course policies, grammar, research, rhetoric, literature, poetry, classical literature, medieval literature, and renaissance literature.
Dangling modifiers a dangling modifier is a phrase or clause that either modifies no word in the sentence or refers to the wrong word. May 16, 2019 a dangling participle modifies an unintended subject. Dangling and misplaced modifiers interactive for 8th. For clear, logical sentences, writers aim modifiers so that they. This article is about dangling modifier enjoy your reading. A dangling modifier a word, phrase, or clause that describes or modifies something that has been left out of the sentence. Instead, they become stumped trying to figure out what the writer meant to. A dangling modifier is a word or phrase often a participle or participial phrase that doesnt actually modify the word its intended to modify. September 22, 2014 by fiction editor beth hill last modified october 12, 2014. When you start looking for dangling modifiers, you can find them easily, and a lot of times, they make for some funny sentences. My grammar and i or should that be me download ebook pdf. Middle schoolers answer ten multiple choice questions regarding dangling and misplaced modifiers. This page is a resource for doctor wheelers students in composition and literature.
Grammar girls quick and dirty tips for better writing book. While dangling modifiers often result in sentences that cause a giggle, they also muddle a persons writing and make the writers meaning unclear. I start reading about adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions, and modifiers all i hear is what. When a sentence opens with such a modifier, the reader expects that the subject relates to the modifier. In all three of those examples, the subject that was being modified by the participial phrase came right after the phrase. Paraphrased for the student learning center by lowrie osborne, october 2007 from. A dangling modifier is a modifier that is not immediately followed by the subject of what is being modified.