Lesson 7: Dangling and Misplaced Participles
536 MCGRAW-HILL’S SAT
Wrong: Afterhaving studiedall night, the
professor postponed the test until
Friday.
The participial phrase modifies a noun. Who
had studied all night? Certainly not the profes-
sor,so the modifying phrase dangles.
One way to correct a dangling participle is simply
to place the correct noun next to the participial
phrase:
Better: Afterhaving studiedall night, I was
frustrated to learn that the professor
had postponed the test until Friday.
(Ianswers the question: who had
studied?)
Another way is to incorporate a subject into the
participial phrase, turning it into a dependent
clause:
Better: AfterI had studiedall night, the
professor postponed the test until
Friday.Every participial phrase should be as close as
possible to the word it modifies. If a modifier
sounds as if it modifies the wrong thing, it is
“misplaced” and must be moved.Wrong: Bob found his watchwalking to
the bathroom.
Was the watch walking? Of course not, so the
participial phrase is misplaced.
Better: Walking to the bathroom, Bob
found his watch.
Also good:Bob found his watch as he was
walking to the bathroom.
Wrong: It was difficult for William to hear
the announcementswaiting for the
train.
Were the announcementswaiting for the train?
Of course not.
Better: While waiting for the train,
William found it difficult to hear
the announcements.What Is a Participle?
There are two kinds of participles:
Present participlesalways end in -ing(e.g.,col-
liding, writing, swimming, eating, fighting).
Past participles often end in -edor -en,but not
always (e.g., collided, written, swum, eaten,
fought).A participle is a verb form used when the verb is
a phrase with a helping verb, as in the following
sentences:
Iwas walkingthrough the lobby.
Wehad been talkingfor over an hour.
Ihave not yet begunto fight.
The chairswere pushedagainst the wall.Participles as Verbs or Adjectives
A participle can be used as a verb part (with a helping
verb), as in He iswritinghis term paperorThey have
takenthe car.It can also be used as an adjective, as in
Don’t trust asmilingsalesmanorI likefrozentreats.
Don’t confuse present participles withgerunds.
They look the same, but they play very differ-
ent roles. Present participles act as verb parts
oradjectives(as above), but gerunds act as
nouns, as in Writingis harder than it looks.
(Writingis the subject of the verb is,so it is a
noun and a gerund.)Dangling and Misplaced
Participial Phrases
Aparticipial phrase is a modifying phrase that
includes a participle. Such a phrase always de-
scribes something, so it acts like an adjective or
adverb. It is usually separated from the main
part of the sentence by one or more commas.Eating ravenously,the vultures remained
on the carcass until it was picked clean.
The runners,exhausted from the final
sprint,stumbled over the finish line.If a participial phrase starts a sentence, the
word it modifies must follow immediately
after the comma.