What are Misplaced Modifiers in Clauses?
A modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that changes the meaning of something in a sentence. When a modifier is placed incorrectly in a sentence and modifies the wrong object, we call it a misplaced modifier.
Examples of Misplaced Modifiers (Clauses)
Some examples of misplaced modifers (clauses) would be the following:
Stuart received a failing grade from Ms. Osborne who was caught cheating on his test.
Incorrect: Ms. Osborne = was caught cheating on his test
Correction: Stuart, who was caught cheating on his test, received a failing grade from Ms. Osborne.
Correct: Stuart = was caught cheating on his test
Lorraine sold cookies to her neighbors which had chocolate chips and walnuts in them.
Incorrect: neighbors = had chocolate chips and walnuts in them
Correction: Lorraine sold cookies, which had chocolate chips and walnuts in them, to her neighbors.
Correct: cookies = had chocolate chips and walnuts in them
My parents gave a used car to my sister that only needed a new set of tires.
Incorrect: sister = only needed a new set of tires
Correction: My parents gave a used car that only needed a new set of tires to my sister.
Correct: car = only needed a new set of tires
Why You Should Avoid Misplaced Modifers in Your Writing
Misplaced modifiers can cause a lot of confusion in your writing by unintentionally altering the meaning of a sentence. To avoid using misplaced modifiers, ensure that the modifier is placed directly before or after the word it is intended to describe. Doing this helps to avoid ambiguity. Take the following sentence as an example:
Jogging down the road, the backpack was heavy on his shoulders.
– It sounds like the backpack was jogging down the road in this sentence.
Jogging down the road, he felt the backpack heavy on his shoulders.
– In this sentence, notice the word “he” is directly next to “jogging down the road” which clears up any ambiguity as to who or what was jogging down the road.
Now that you have an understanding of misplaced modifiers in clauses, be sure to learn about misplaced modifiers in phrases!
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