Dangling Modifiers

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Chapter Thirty-Three
Dangling Modifiers
College Writing Skills, 5E and College Writing
Skills with Readings, 5EJohn Langan
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Dangling Modifiers

• A modifier that opens a sentence must be followed
  immediately by the word it is meant to describe.
• Otherwise, the result is a

Dangling Modifier.
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Dangling Modifiers

• Heres an example
• Jumping from limb to limb, the spectators at the
  zoo were delighted by the monkeys.
• (The spectators werent jumping, were they?)

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Dangling Modifiers

• Thats the trouble with
• Your sentences take on an unintended meaning.
• Lets correct the sentence about the monkeys.

Dangling Modifiers
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Dangling Modifiers

• Incorrect
• Jumping from limb to limb, the spectators at the
  zoo were delighted by the monkeys.

• Correct
• Jumping from limb to limb, the monkeys delighted
  the spectators at the zoo.

How did the sentence change?
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Dangling Modifiers

• We put the subject right after the opening word
  group.

• Jumping from limb to limb, the
  delighted the spectators at the zoo.

monkeys
Can we fix the sentence another way?
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Dangling Modifiers

• Yes! We can place the subject within the opening
  word group.

• While the were jumping from limb to
  limb, they delighted the spectators at the zoo.

monkeys
Lets review. . .
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Correcting Dangling Modifiers

• Decide on a logical subject, and do one of the
  following
• 1. Place the subject right after the opening word
  group.
• OR
• 2. Place the subject within the opening word
  group.