Hey, everyone, welcome to another English grammar lesson. Today we're going to be covering
dangling and misplaced modifiers.
So the word “modify” means to change—to change the
meaning of something: a change of time, a change of place, a change of situation. So
a modifier in a sentence is any word or phrase that modifies, or changes, another word or
phrase in that sentence. Let me show you: “The man’s broken computer was fixed”
versus “The broken man’s computer was fixed.” Now, the modifier in question here
is the word “broken,” but notice how, depending on where this word is placed, the
sentence could have an entirely different meaning. “The man’s broken computer was
fixed.” In this sentence, we’re saying that the computer is the thing that’s broken:
the broken computer. However, in the second sentence, “broken” doesn’t actually
modify “computer”; it modifies “man.” “The broken man’s computer was fixed.”
So in this sentence, you are technically saying that the man himself is broken, which is…
interesting… So you see that it’s very important to put your modifiers in the correct
place. And that’s what we call a “misplaced” modifier: when the modifier is in the wrong
place. The second common type of “modifier error” is what we call a “dangling”
modifier, which would look something like this: “Hungry, the sandwich was eaten by
me” versus “Hungry, I ate the sandwich.” Now, the modifier here is “hungry,” and
it should modify the word or phrase right next to it. So if that’s true—if the modifier
is technically supposed to be modifying the thing right next to it—then what would this
first sentence really be saying? Well, believe it or not, you would actually be saying that
the sandwich was hungry, which is obviously a lot different from the second sentence,
where you would be saying that I was hungry, right? So some of you might be thinking, “Okay,
well, yeah I kind of get that, but how am I supposed to remember the difference between
a dangling modifier and a misplaced modifier?” And the honest answer is it doesn’t really
matter. As long as you can tell when there’s a modifier error and you know how to fix it,
then you don’t really need to worry about what specific kind of modifier error it was.
Let’s take a look at some examples and see if you can fix them. “On paper plates, we
ate the hot dogs.” So, technically, this would be a dangling modifier. But that’s
not the point; the point is there’s something wrong with this sentence. So first of all,
can you even tell me what the modifier is in this sentence? Do you even know what it
is? Give yourself a point if you said “on paper plates.” Now, remember what I said
earlier: Modifiers are supposed to talk about the thing right next to them, and here that
would be the word “we.” So really, what this sentence is saying is that we were on
paper plates. Like, we were sitting on paper plates and eating our hot dogs. Probably not
what you’re trying to say, right? So the question is, how do we fix it? How do we rearrange
this sentence so that the modifier error goes away? Well, I’ll give you a second to think
about it. The correct version of this sentence would be “We ate the hot dogs on paper plates.”
Now, the modifier “on paper plates” is actually modifying the hot dogs, which is
what we want. Next one: “I saw a dollar walking home.” So technically this would
be a misplaced modifier, but I don’t really care. What I really want to know is, first
of all, what even is the modifier in the sentence? And the answer is “walking home.” Okay,
so what does that phrase modify? Well, like I said earlier, it’s supposed to modify
the thing right next to it, and in this sentence that would be “dollar.” So, yes, yes indeed,
you would be saying that there was a dollar walking home—like, on its little dollar
legs or something. And I imagine that would be a problem. So how do we fix it? Where do
we put that modifier so that the sentence actually makes sense? Think about it for a
second. Should have said… right here: “Walking home, I saw a dollar.” Now the modifier
refers to the word “I,” meaning that I was the one walking home, which actually makes
sense. Couple more: “Because he was late, the teacher gave John a detention.” Okay,
so another dangling modifier here, technically. But my first question, as always, is what
is the modifier? What am I even looking at here? And the answer is “Because he was
late.” And what does that phrase modify? Well, again, it’s supposed to modify the
thing right next to it, so “teacher.” Okay, so because the teacher was late, he
gave John a detention? So the teacher showed up late and then gave a student named John
a detention? Uh… okay… So how do I change this sentence so that it actually makes sense?
Think about it. And the answer is, no matter what you do, you just need to make sure that
the modifier is connected to John, not the teacher. So what I would do, personally, is
take out the word “teacher” entirely because if the teacher is male, we might actually
have two people who the “he” could refer to, and that could get very confusing. So,
for me, personally, I would say something like this: “Because he was late, John received
a detention.” Or John “was given” a detention. Or John “got” a detention.
Whatever. The point is the phrase “because he was late” needs to be modifying “John,”
so it needs to be right next to “John.” Okay, last one: “I grabbed the sled with
my snow pants on.” Okay, so this would be a misplaced modifier technically, but, as
always, what even is the modifier here? Answer is “with my snow pants on.” Now tell me:
Written as it is, what is this sentence actually saying? Well, technically, it’s saying that
you grabbed the sled and that the sled had your snow pants on—like, the sled was wearing
your snow pants. Okay, so how do I fix this? What do I do so that things actually make
sense? Answer is… I do this: “With my snow pants on, I grabbed the sled.” This
way, your modifier is actually talking about the word “I,” meaning that I was the one
with the snow pants on. Cool. Well, whether you came here for a refresher or are just
now learning this stuff for the first time, I hope this video helped. Be sure to check
out the free practice down in the description, and—uh—we’ll see you next time. Thanks.