Section 2 Activities
Lesson 7
Misplaced Modifiers
83 Introduction
A misplaced modifier is a phrase or clause that is intended to modify
rd in a sentence but is in the wrong place. As a result, it connects the wrong words or
ideas to each other and confuses the reader. For example:
We sat and talked about camping in the kitchen.
• The phrase in the kitchen is meant to modify sat, but instead it suggests that the camping
happened in the kitchen. Now, look at another example.
I served breakfast to my family, which I made myself,
• The clause which I made myself is misplaced. It suggests that the speaker made her family,
not breakfast.
• To fix a misplaced modifier, move it as close as possible to what it should modify:
We sat in the kitchen and talked about camping.
| served my family breakfast, which I made myself.
Guided Practice
Rewrite each sentence to correct the misplaced modifier.
1 I baked blueberry muffins and scrambled some eggs in the oven.
Els baked blueberry muffins in the oven
and scrambled same eggs:
2 My cousin Rob told us while he ate where he and Josh had camped.
3 Rob had taken my nine-year-old brother camping, who is in college.
Hint
If a dependent clause
begins with the relative
pronoun who or which
and gives information
that is not crucial to the
meaning of the
sentence, use commas
to set off the clause
from the rest of
the sentence.
Example:
The muffins, which
smelled delicious, were
still warm.
4 Rob had photos of the lovely lake on his phone near their campsite.
5 We put a drawing of the lake on the fridge that Josh had made.
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Grade 7. Packet 1, Section 2
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