IXL | Select the misplaced or dangling modifier

Select the misplaced or dangling modifier.

Forced to forfeit both her career and her American citizenship, actress Grace Kelly's 1956 marriage to the Prince of Monaco came at a significant cost.

ref_doc_title.

Learn with an example

question

Select the misplaced or dangling modifier.

A famous classical composer and generous teacher, Franz Liszt's free piano lessons benefited roughly four hundred students during his lifetime.

key idea

A modifier is a word or phrase that modifies, or describes, another word or phrase.

A misplaced modifier is a modifier that appears to modify the wrong word or phrase because it is too far from the word or phrase that it should modify.

Winston saw monkeys and peacocks on vacation in India.

This sentence has a misplaced modifier. It wrongly suggests that the monkeys and peacocks were on vacation.

On vacation in India, Winston saw monkeys and peacocks.

This sentence correctly suggests that Winston was on vacation.

A dangling modifier is a modifier that appears to modify the wrong word or phrase because the word or phrase that it should modify is missing from the sentence.

Trying to fall asleep, the sheets felt uncomfortably hot.

This sentence has a dangling modifier. It wrongly suggests that the sheets were trying to fall asleep.

Trying to fall asleep, I felt uncomfortably hot in the sheets.

This sentence correctly suggests that I was trying to fall asleep.

solution

A famous classical composer and generous teacher is a misplaced modifier because it appears to modify Franz Liszt's free piano lessons. The sentence wrongly suggests that Franz Liszt's piano lessons, rather than Franz Liszt himself, were a famous composer and a generous teacher.

A famous classical composer and generous teacher, Franz Liszt's free piano lessons benefited roughly four hundred students during his lifetime.

$Confetti$

Excellent!

Now entering the Challenge Zone—are you ready?

Questions
answeredQuestions

Time
elapsedTime

hr	min	sec
00	00	06

SmartScore
out of 100
IXL's SmartScore is a dynamic measure of progress towards mastery, rather than a percentage grade. It tracks your skill level as you tackle progressively more difficult questions. Consistently answer questions correctly to reach excellence (90), or conquer the Challenge Zone to achieve mastery (100)! Learn more

Teacher tools

Work it out

Not feeling ready yet? This can help:

RR.1Misplaced modifiers with pictures

Excellent! You got that right!

Jumping to level 1 of 1

Excellent!