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MODIFIERS

Modifiers are words, phrases, or clauses that providedescription in sentences.

Modifiers can be adjectives, adjective clauses,

adverbs, adverb clauses, absolute phrases, infinitivephrases, participle phrases, and prepositionalphrases.

Moreover, other constituents can function as modifiers.

For Example [Even more] people were there. (adverb in determiner phrase).

It ran [right up the tree]. (adverb in prepositional phrase).

His desk was in [the faculty office]. (noun in noun phrase).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Determiner_(class)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prepositionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prepositionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Determiner_(class)

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ERRORS IN MODIFIERS

Dangling

Modifiers

Squinting

modifiers

MisplacedModifiers

Errors inmodifiers

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MISPLACED MODIFIERS

is a word,misplaced modifierAphrase or clause that has landed

in the wrong place in thesentence.

Modifier must be placed nextto the word it modifies.

When modifier is incorrectly placed, thesentence either communicates

meaning the writer did not intended or

makes no sense at all.

MisplacedModifiers

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FOR EXAMPLE:

[WRONG] On her way home, jan found agold mans watch.

Misplaced Modifier

The example above suggests that a gold man owns a watch.

[RIGHT] On her way home jan found a mansgold watch.

Correctly placed Modifier

Now it is the watch that is gold.

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Misplaced Word

you should place single-word modifiers near theword or words they modify.

For Example

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Example

[WRONG]After our conversation lessons, we couldunderstand the Spanish spoken by our visitors from Madrid

easily.

Do we understand the spanish easily, or do the

Visitor speak it easily??

[RIGHT]We couldeasilyunderstand the Spanishspoken by our visitors from Madrid.

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Misplaced AdjectivesMisplaced adjectives are incorrectly separatedfrom the nouns they modify and almost always

distort the intended meaning.

[WRONG] The child ate a cold dish of cereals for breakfast

this morning.

Misplaced adjective (modifies dish)

Correct the error by placing the adjective next to the noun it

modifies.

[RIGHT] The child ate a dish of cold cereal for breakfast thismorning.

Correctly placed adjective (modifies cereal)

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Examples

[WRONG] Thestolen students book lay on the desk.

Misplaced Adjective (modifies student)

[RIGHT] the studentsstolen book lay on the desk.

Correctly placed adjective (modifies book)

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Placements of Adverbs

It can also change meaning in sentences.

For example, the sentences below illustrate how the placement ofjustcan change the sentence's meaning.

misplacinganadverbnot onlyalters the

intended meaning, but also creates

a sentence whose meaning

is highly unlikely or completely ridiculous.

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Just means only John was picked, no one else:

Just john was picked to host the program.

Justmeans that John hosted only the program, nothing else:

John was just picked to host the program.

Just means that John was picked now:

John was picked to host just the program.

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Examples

[WRONG] We ate the lunch that we had brought slowly.To repair the meaning, move the adverb slowly so that it isnear ate.

[RIGHT] Weslowlyate the lunch that we had brought.

[WRONG]Ionlycontributed $10.00 to the fund fororphaned children.

Repaired, however, the sentence means that I contributed only$10.00.

[RIGHT] I contributedonly $10.00 to the fund for orphaned

children.

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Misplaced phrases

To fix the errors and clarify the meaning, put thephrases next tothe noun they are supposed to modify.

Example No: 1

[WRONG]The dealer sold the Cadillac to thebuyer withleather seats.

[RIGHT] The dealer sold theCadillac with leather seatstothe buyers.

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Example No: 2

[WRONG] The three bankers talked quietly in the corner

smoking pipes.

[RIGHT] The threebankers smoking pipestalked quietly inthe corner.

Example No: 3 [WRONG] They saw a fence behind the house made of barbedwire.

[RIGHT] They saw afence made of barbed wirebehind thehouse.

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Misplaced clauses

To fix the errors and clarify the meaning, put thephrases next tothe noun they are supposed to modify.

Example No: 1 [WRONG] The waiter served a dinner roll to thewoman thatwas well buttered.

[RIGHT] The waiter served adinner roll that was wellbutteredto the woman.

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Example No: 2

[WRONG] Ralph piled all of his clothes in thehamper that hehad worn.

[RIGHT] Ralph piled all of hisclothes that he had worninthe hamper.

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SQUINTING MODIFIERS

A squinting modifier is alsosometimes called a two-way

modifier.

This modifier error occurswhen a modifier is placedbetween two words and

could modifier either one.

SquintingModifiers

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Example

Students who miss classes frequently fail the course.

Two possible meanings of this sentence:

Students who miss class frequently

Or

Frequently fail the course.

Correct a squinting modifier error by repositioning the modifier toplace it next to the word it modifies.

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Example

The teacher saidon Mondayshe would return our essays.

?

Correction #1 (meaning the essays will be returned on Monday)

The teacher said she would return our essayson Monday.

Correction #2 (meaning that the teacher spoke on Monday)

On Mondaythe teacher said she would return our essays.

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DANGLING MODIFIERS

DanglingModifiers

The dangling modifier, isoften (though not always)

located at the beginning of asentence.

A dangling modifier is

usually a phrase or anelliptical clause

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Example

[WRONG] Raised in Nova Scotia, it is natural to missthe smell of the sea.

adjective phrase

[RIGHT] For a person raised in Nova Scotia, it isnatural to miss the smell of the sea.

(The phrase no longer functions as an adjective)

Raised in Nova Scotia, Ioften miss the smell of the sea.

(The phrase functions as an adjective but now automatically modifies "I,"

a logical connection)

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THE END