Modifier Errors

                  Modifier Errors

Raju Shrivastava, Humour Ambassador, would get a lot of grist in this chapter.

Modifier is a word or phrase that modifies another word or phrase, limiting or adding to its meaning.

Modifier errors occur due to the faulty placing of words or phrases in a sentence.

There are no fixed rules to correct these. All we need to make sure is that the right (intended) meaning is conveyed using the least possible words. Your best friend in these situations will be your common sense, and of course, experience gained from plenty of practice.

Read the following sentences. While you enjoy yourself, make a mental note not make such mistakes.

1       Wanted: Man to take care of cow that does not smoke or drink (who should not smoke a drink the cow or the              man)

2       If the baby does not thrive on fresh milk, it should be boiled. (What is to be boiled —             the baby or the milk?)

3       At the age of twenty, my father let me drive his car. (Who was 20, the father or the author?)

4       Walking back from the village, my wallet was lost. (Does your wallet walk?)

5        The store sold inflatable children's toys. (The sentence reads as though the children are inflatable, instead            of the toys.)

6       We provide restrooms for ladies that are clean and comfortable. (Paul Harvey said that about Wal-Mart                          restrooms. What about ladies who are not clean and comfortable?)

7.             Beautiful and sensually dressed, the men noticed her immediately. (Why were the men so                  dressed?)

8.             Dressed in a silk nightgown, he thought his wife looked sexy. (What was he doing in the                    nightgown?)

9.             I lost my hat running down the street. (Was the hat running?)

10    The other day, I shot an elephant in my pajamas. (How did the elephant get inside my                        pajamas, I'll never know.)

11   She claimed yesterday she saw a UFO. (Did she see the UFO yesterday? Or did she make the claim                    yesterday? To be clear, we must rewrite the sentence.)

12   The assembly line workers were told they had been fired by the personnel director. (Did the personnel director         tell the workers they had been fired? Or was he the one who actually fired them and somebody             else told them? It's not at all clear.)

13 If your dog hates the cat, throw it out. (Throw out what — the dog or the cat?)

We are sure you have got a first-hand feel of what modifier problems are. So, ready for some BATTING practice?

Incorrect	Correct
Smoking a big cigar, the baby was	Smoking a big cigar, the father admired
admired by its father.	his baby.
Romeo almost kissed Juliet as soon.	Romeo kissed Juliet almost as soon as he
as he met her.	met her.
I have fallen in love with the	I have fallen in love with the woman's
beautiful woman's daughter.	beautiful daughter.
Following are some useful tips for	Following are some useful tips from the
protecting your person and property	FBI for protecting your person and
from the FBI.	property.
Manufactured in Italy,: Abhishek was	Abhishek was delighted with the fine
delighted with the fine quality of the	quality of the leather shoes manufactured
leather shoes.	in  Italy.
	OR
	Manufactured in Italy, the leather shoes
	delighted Abhishek.
The patient was referred to a	The patient with several emotional
psychologist with several emotional	problems was referred to a psychologist.
problems.
Two cars were reported stolen by the	Yesterday, the police reported that two
police yesterday.	cars were stolen.

Incorrect	Correct
The young girl was walking the dog in a	The young girl in a short skirt was walking the
short skirt. The dog was chasing the boy	dog. The dog with the spiked collar was
with the spiked collar,	chasing the boy.
In a red satin gown spangled with	Catching sight of her in a red satin gown
sequins, he was captivated by her	spangled with sequins, he was captivated by
beauty.	her beauty.
Mother gave the cake to the homeless	Mother gave the homeless man the cake that
man that she had baked and iced	she had baked and iced yesterday.
yesterday.
I gave a book to my teacher that was old	I gave my teacher a book that was old and
and tattered.	tattered.
The mayor was described as a round,	The mayor was described as a round, squat
squat man with a droopy beard weighing	man, weighing 60kg, with a droopy beard.
60k   .
Hanging on the wall, she glanced in the	She glanced in the mirror hanging on the wall.
mirror.
I bought a bus from an elderly man that	I bought a bus that was in good running
was in good running condition,	condition from an elderly man.
Having lost patience, the malfunctioning	Having lost patience, the student replaced the
computer was replaced.	malfunctioning computer.
Having leaped out of a second-storey	Having leaped out of a second-storey window,
window, her leg was broken by the fall,	the girl suffered a broken leg in the fall. OR
	When the girl leaped out of a second-storey
	window, she broke her leg in the fall.
While climbing the tree, the bottle	While Mr. Daroobaz was climbing the tree, the
dropped.	bottle dropped.
	OR
	While climbing the tree, Mr. Daroobaz dropped
	the bottle.
The teacher said on Thursday we'd have	On Thursday, the teacher said we'd have to
to work harder on our math exercises.	work harder on our math exercises.
Though only sixteen, UCLA accepted her	Though she was only sixteen, UCLA accepted
application	her application.
Defining your terms clearly strengthens	Defining your terms will clearly strengthen
your argument.	your argument. OR
	A clear definition of your terms strengthens
	your argument.
Naina said during the meeting Maina	During the meeting, Naina said Maina acted
acted  like a fool.	like a fool. OR
	Naina said Maina acted like a fool during the
	meeting.
Do not sit in the chair without being	You should not sit in the chair unless it is fully
fully assembled.	assembled.
While eating dinner, a fly slipped •into	While she was eating dinner, a fly slipped into
her soup.	her soup.
They bought a puppy for my sister they	They bought a puppy they call Fido for my
call  Fido.	sister.
Nearly dead, the police finally found the	_ The police finally found the victim, who was
victim,	nearly dead.
Walking through the park, the grass	Walking through the park, I found that the
tickled my feet.	grass tickled my feet.
A fine athlete and student, the coach	The coach honoured the captain of the tennis
honoured the captain of the tennis team.	team, a fine athlete and student.
He said tonight he'd call me.	Tonight, he said he'd call me. OR
	He said he'd call me tonight. (Slightly
	different meaning)