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Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English. One of the answer choices reproduces the underlined portion as it is written in the sentence.
When she was young, living in her mother's garden, Helen liked to imagine there were fairies.
In many of these examples, it is not clear if the modifier "living in her mother's garden" refers to Helen or the fairies. The modifier should appear as close to the noun that it modifies as possible so that the meaning is clear. For this reason, "When she was young, Helen liked to imagine there were fairies living in her mother's garden" is the most correct answer.
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Observing from the summit, the valley that stood below Mike's tour group seemed unfathomably extensive and arid. No error
“Observing” is apart of a misplaced modifier that should refer to Mike's tour group, not the valley. The way the sentence is written, it seems as if "the valley" is "observing from the summit," not "Mike's tour group."
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Jumping up and down in joy, Annie's excitement was evident when she saw her sister, who had been deployed for nearly a year and whom she had dearly missed. No error
“Jumping up and down in joy” is a misplaced modifier that refers to “Annie," but as the sentence is currently written, is seems as if “Annie's excitement” is jumping up and down in joy, not Annie. The sentence should therefore be rephrased so that “Annie" is modified by the introductory phrase, e.g. "Jumping up and down in joy, Annie was excited when she saw her sister."
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Damaged beyond repair, the tow truck hauled the totaled car away from the accident scene and to the local junkyard. No error
“Damaged beyond repair” is a modifier that refers to the totaled car, but with its current placement it appears to be describing the (obviously functional) tow truck. The modifier should be moved next to “the totaled car.”
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Facing snow, ice, and starvation, I can’t imagine how the early Arctic explorers survived their hazardous expeditions, some of which lasted for weeks. No error
“Facing snow, ice, and starvation” is a dangling modifier, since it is obviously meant to describe not the speaker of the sentence but rather the Arctic explorers. To correct the sentence, the modifier would have to be moved next to the phrase it modifies.
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Smelling like old dirty socks, Andy threw the wheel of cheese into the dumpster at the end of the street. No error
"Smelling like old dirty socks" is a misplaced modifier that refers to the wheel of cheese, but in the current form of this sentence seems as if it is modifying Andy.
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Barely hanging from the tree branch, the outstretched arms of its owner seemed like they were a million miles away from the scared kitten. No error
"Barely hanging from the tree branch" is a misplaced modifier in the current incarnation of this sentence, as it is modifying "the outstretched arms" rather than correctly referring to "the scared kitten."
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Shaking the rafters of the old gymnasium, the varsity basketball team was overwhelmed by the hometown crowd's vigorous cheers after the epic championship victory. No error
"Shaking the rafters of the old gymnasium" is a misplaced modifier that is intended to refer to the crowd's vigorous cheers, but here incorrectly modifies "the varsity basketball team."
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Facing a harsh winter and a lack of food in a new land, the students were engrossed in the story of how the Pilgrims survived their first winter in America. No error.
"Facing a harsh winter and a lack of food in a new land" is a dangling modifier that should modify the Pilgrims, not the students. We will need to update the sentence so that the modifier more clearly reflects the correct noun.
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Projecting a stately demeanor as he descended from the helicopter, the Secret Service officer immediately stepped up to protect the smiling President. No error.
"Projecting a stately demeanor as he descended from the helicopter" is a dangling modifier that should refer to the President, not to the Secret Service.
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Shaking every building in the downtown area, Winona crouched in the corner of her bedroom when the massive earthquake hit. No error.
"Shaking every building in the downtown area" is a dangling modifier that should correctly refer to "when the massive earthquake hit" and not to Winona.
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Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English. One of the answer choices reproduces the underlined portion as it is written in the sentence.
Rustling in the summer breeze, Sam was impressed by the oak trees on his walk.
Since "rustling in the summer breeze" refers to the oak trees rather than Sam (since trees, not people, can rustle), "the oak trees" has to go directly after that modifying phrase. This construction only occurs in the answer choice of "Rustling in the summer breeze, the oak trees impressed Sam on his walk."
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Running late to class, Tom's backpack fell off as he sprinted down the hall. No error
The dangling modifier "Running late to class" must be immediately followed by the subject Tom. In the question, the modifier is followed by Tom's backpack, which incorrectly suggests that the backpack is running late to class.
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Staring out the window, the lengthy car ride to Nebraska seemed to take forever. No error
The error in this sentence is the dangling modifier: "Staring out the window." A dangling modifier is one that is left without a noun to modify (or without one that it would make sense to modify). Since a car ride can't stare out a window, "staring out the window" does not have a logical noun to modify and is therefore a dangling modifier. A corrected sentence might look like this: "As Mia stared out the window, the lengthy car ride to Nebraska seemed to last forever" or "Staring out the window, Mia lamented that the lengthy car ride to Nebraska seemed to take forever."
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Looking at it from above, the city seemed much smaller than George would have thought. No error
The sentence above contains a dangling modifier. Since it is George who is "looking at it from above" in the first clause, George must be the subject of the second clause, not "the city."
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Taking deep breaths, enough composure was regained by the pianist to finish the concert. No error
This sentence contains a dangling modifier. As it is written, it seems as though “enough composure” was taking the deep breaths. In order to correct this mistake, “the pianist” must be listed first after the comma to make it clear that he is the subject of the sentence as the one taking the deep breaths. Correctly re-phrased this sentence would read, "Taking deep breaths, the pianist regained enough composure to finish the concert."
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
When I passed the shop window, I saw a silver woman’s locket that would be perfect for my aunt’s birthday. No error
Here, the word “silver” is a misplaced modifier. It’s the locket that’s silver, not the woman, so the correct wording would be a “woman’s silver locket.”
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
I’m looking for the torn biology teacher’s manual so I can replace it with a new one. No error
It’s not the biology teacher who’s torn; it’s the manual. Therefore, “torn” is a misplaced modifier and should be moved directly next to the phrase it modifies.
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
We can’t give juice to any of the children in glass bottles; someone might drop one and break it. No error
The "children" aren’t in glass bottles; the "juice" is. Therefore, “in glass bottles” is a misplaced modifier and should be moved next to the noun it modifies.
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Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
My niece Tara wore her favorite blue dress to the homecoming dance, which unfortunately didn’t match her green shoes. No error
“Which unfortunately didn’t match her green shoes” is a misplaced modifier, since it describes not the dance but the dress. It is incorrectly placed in the sentence.
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