Microsoft® Manual of Style, Fourth Edition

Dangling and misplaced modifiers

A dangling modifier is one that does not modify any element of the sentence in which it appears. A misplaced modifier is one that makes the sentence ambiguous because it is placed too far from the thing it modifies or too near to something else that it could modify.

The most common error of this type is a participial or infinitive phrase at the beginning of a sentence that does not refer to the subject. If the main clause is in passive voice, it is easy to overlook the lack of connection between modifier and subject.

To correct a dangling modifier, either change the subject of the sentence or change the modifying phrase into a clause so that its referent is clear.

For more information, see Harbrace College Handbook ...