Misplaced Modifiers

Modifier Errors--A modifier must be next to the thing it is modifying (describing). If the modifier is not next to the thing it is describing, or if the thing it is describing is never mentioned in the sentence at all, that is an error.

"After sunning himself for hours, the couch where the cat sat was covered in fur." The phrase "After sunning himself for hours" is describing the cat, so it needs to be next to the subject "cat." With the way this sentence is originally written, it sounds as though it is describing the couch.

Which sentence contains a modifier error?

A. After eating the cake, the plate was empty.

B. After eating the cake, we cleaned the plate.

A has a dangling modifier — sounds like the plate ate the cake

Which sentence correctly places the modifier?

A. She almost drove her kids to school every day.

B. She drove her kids to school almost every day.

B is correct — “almost” modifies how often she drove.

Which sentence contains a misplaced modifier?

A. He served pancakes to the children on paper plates.

B. He served the children pancakes on paper plates.

A is the modifier fail — makes it sound like the children are on paper plates

Which sentence is grammatically correct?

A. While walking to school, the rain soaked my clothes.

B. While I was walking to school, the rain soaked my clothes.

B is correct — it clearly states who was walking.

Passive Voice--The subject of the sentence must come before the object of the sentence.

"The television was what I was watching." (wrong because the subject of the sentence comes after the television, the object of the sentence.)

Which sentence is in the passive voice?

A. The chef prepared the dish perfectly.

B. The dish was perfectly prepared by the chef.

B is passive — the subject (the dish) is acted upon.

Which is written in active voice?

A. The song was sung by the choir.

B. The choir sang the song.

B — active voice: subject (choir) does the action.

Which sentence is passive?

A. A cure for the disease was discovered by scientists.

B. Scientists discovered a cure for the disease.

A is passive — action is done to the subject (cure).

Which sentence is active voice?

A. The announcement was made by the principal during the assembly.

B. The principal made the announcement during the assembly.

B — active voice: principal is the doer of the action.