Misplaced Modifiers: My Favorite

The title of this blog/newsletter can be read several ways, and I mean all of them. Yes, the grammar discussion about misplaced modifiers is one of my favorites. Yes, it’s one of my favorite topics to talk and teach about. Yes, misplaced modifiers can produce some of my favorite funny reads.

Witness the (in)famously brilliant example from Groucho Marx: “One morning, I shot an elephant in my pajamas. How he got into my pajamas I’ll never know.”

Simply put, a misplaced modifier is a descriptive word or phrase that is not describing what it intends to describe, or “modify.” Modifiers themselves can be adjectives, adjectives, or clauses, and they add detail to the subject or object of a sentence.

You usually need to reorder or even rewrite for clarity any sentence that has a misplaced modifier. Here are some examples and their rewrites, with the modifiers highlighted:

I shot an elephant in my pajamas. <The elephant was not in my pajamas; I was in my pajamas.>
- Better: While in my pajamas, I shot an elephant. <The subject being modified, “I,” immediately follows the modifier “in my pajamas.”>
We only moved into the house last week. <The word “only” is the modifier. Its placement says that the only thing we did last week was to move into the house.>
- Better: We moved into the house only last week. <Put the “only” closer to the phrase it should modify: “last week.”>
The girl found the lost dog with her hair in curlers. <The dog most likely did not have her hair in curlers; the girl did.>
- Better: The girl, whose hair was in curlers, found the lost dog.
- Better: With her hair in curlers, the girl found the lost dog.
We tried to walk by the children on tiptoes. <Who is on tiptoes? This says the children are on tiptoes.>
- Better: On tiptoes, we tried to walk by the children.
As a young child, his father forced Charlie to play the piano. <“As a young child” is modifying “his father,” which doesn’t make sense. How could Charlie’s father make Charlie play the piano when his father is a young child?>
- Better: When he was a young child, Charlie’s father forced him to play the piano.
- Better: As a young child, Charlie was forced to play the piano by his father. <This is passive voice, however, which is a subject for another day.>

Dangling modifiers are a subset of misplaced modifiers. The modifier is dangling because the subject or object it modifies is missing. A dangler usually appears at the beginning of the sentence, and a gerund (-ing word) is often the culprit.

Stepping forward, a hush came over the audience. <“Stepping forward” modifies “a hush.” A hush can’t step forward. This sentence doesn’t tell us who stepped forward.>
- Better: As she stepped forward, a hush came over the audience.
- Better: Stepping forward, she heard a hush come over the audience.
When flashing, turn on headlights. <This instruction appears above overhead lights near a local turnpike tunnel, but it’s missing the reference to those lights. With the imperative verb, “turn,” there is the understood subject “you.” Thus, this says that when you are flashing, you should turn on your headlights. I rarely flash going 55 miles per hour. 😊>
- Better: When lights are flashing, turn on your headlights. <The understood “you” is now being modified by the first clause.>
To add symbolism to the use of literary techniques, the tattoos represent the passage of time. <The tattoos are not the ones adding symbolism.>
- Better: To add symbolism to the list of literary techniques used, the author uses tattoos to represent the passage of time.
- Better: The author uses tattoos to symbolize the passage of time. <The modifying clause is really not needed.>

Grammar, Writing, and AI