Grammar Quiz: Misplaced & Dangling Modifiers with Answers

📚 Quick Study Guide

• 🔍 Misplaced Modifier: A misplaced modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that is improperly separated from the word it modifies or describes. Because of the separation, the sentence sounds awkward, and the meaning might be unclear or unintentionally funny.
• 📝 Example of Misplaced Modifier: Incorrect: *I saw a dog walking down the street on a leash.* (Was the street on a leash?) Correct: *I saw a dog on a leash walking down the street.*
• ⚠️ Dangling Modifier: A dangling modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that doesn't clearly and logically refer to any word in the sentence. Typically, dangling modifiers occur at the beginning of sentences.
• 💡 Example of Dangling Modifier: Incorrect: *Having finished the game, the pizza was ordered.* (The pizza didn't finish the game!) Correct: *Having finished the game, we ordered the pizza.*
• ✏️ Fixing Misplaced Modifiers: Place the modifier as close as possible to the word it's meant to modify.
• ✅ Fixing Dangling Modifiers:
  • Add a word to the sentence that the modifier can logically modify.
  • Rewrite the sentence entirely.

🧪 Practice Quiz

1. Which sentence contains a misplaced modifier?
   1. Driving down the lane, I saw a deer.
   2. I saw a deer driving down the lane.
   3. I saw a deer that was driving down the lane.
   4. Driving down the lane, a deer was seen by me.


2. Which sentence contains a dangling modifier?
   1. After eating dinner, the dishes were washed.
   2. After eating dinner, I washed the dishes.
   3. I washed the dishes after eating dinner.
   4. The dishes were washed by me after I ate dinner.


3. Identify the correctly written sentence.
   1. Covered in mud, I hosed off the dog.
   2. Covered in mud, the dog was hosed off.
   3. I hosed off the dog, covered in mud.
   4. Covered in mud, the hose rinsed the dog.


4. Which sentence is free of modifier errors?
   1. Almost burnt, I rescued the toast.
   2. Almost burnt, the toast was rescued.
   3. I rescued the toast, almost burnt.
   4. I rescued the almost burnt toast.


5. Which sentence contains a misplaced modifier?
   1. She served sandwiches to the children on paper plates.
   2. She served the children sandwiches on paper plates.
   3. She served sandwiches on paper plates to the children.
   4. On paper plates, she served sandwiches to the children.


6. Which sentence contains a dangling modifier?
   1. To improve his grades, studying was essential.
   2. Studying was essential to improve his grades.
   3. To improve his grades, he knew studying was essential.
   4. To improve his grades, he found studying essential.


7. Find the sentence with no modifier errors.
   1. Walking through the park, the flowers smelled lovely.
   2. The flowers smelled lovely, walking through the park.
   3. Walking through the park, I smelled the lovely flowers.
   4. I smelled the lovely flowers, walking through the park.