dolphin
Get Started

SAT Reading and Writing skill page

SAT Modifiers Practice

Make sure descriptive phrases clearly point to the right noun in SAT grammar questions.

Practice modifiers in Dolphin SATPractice questions
9-14 min practice time3 questions in practice blockStandard English Conventions
Practice time9-14 min
Practice questions3 questions
Best forStandard English Conventions

What this tests

What to know for this SAT skill

Dolphin practice questions

Practice your skill

Question 1 of 3Easy
Which sentence is clearest?
  1. Covered in notes, Maya reviewed the notebook.
  2. Maya reviewed the notebook covered in notes.
  3. Maya, covered in notes, reviewed the notebook.
  4. Reviewing Maya, the notebook was covered in notes.
Show answer and solution
Correct answerB. Maya reviewed the notebook covered in notes.

Solution walkthrough

  1. The phrase "covered in notes" should describe the notebook, so it belongs next to "notebook. "
Question 2 of 3Medium
Which revision fixes the dangling modifier? Walking to class, the rain began suddenly.
  1. Walking to class, the rain suddenly began.
  2. As Maya walked to class, the rain began suddenly.
  3. The rain, walking to class, began suddenly.
  4. Walking suddenly, class began in the rain.
Show answer and solution
Correct answerB. As Maya walked to class, the rain began suddenly.

Solution walkthrough

  1. The original makes it sound like the rain was walking.
  2. The revision names Maya as the person walking.
Question 3 of 3Hard
A student wants to say that the essay, not the teacher or Jordan, was covered in red ink. Which choice places the modifier correctly?
  1. Covered in red ink, the teacher handed Jordan the essay.
  2. The teacher, covered in red ink, handed Jordan the essay.
  3. Covered in red ink, Jordan was handed the essay by the teacher.
  4. The teacher handed Jordan the essay covered in red ink.
Show answer and solution
Correct answerD. The teacher handed Jordan the essay covered in red ink.

Solution walkthrough

  1. The phrase "covered in red ink" describes the essay, so it belongs right next to "the essay. "
  2. The other choices place it beside the teacher or Jordan, which says one of them was covered in ink.

Avoid these traps

Common mistakes on this skill

Letting a modifier attach to the nearest wrong noun

A descriptive phrase should sit next to the word it logically modifies.

Leaving an introductory modifier without a subject

The noun immediately after an introductory modifying phrase must be the person or thing performing that phrase.

Study plan

How to practice this skill in Dolphin

Dolphin Web gives you a personalized SAT study plan with lessons, unlimited Pip AI help, practice questions, full-length tests, and mistake review. The iPhone and Android apps are free. See plans.

  1. Underline the modifying phrase and state exactly what it describes.
  2. Place that noun directly beside the modifier whenever the sentence structure allows.
  3. Read the complete sentence literally to check for an illogical or dangling description.
Practice modifiers in Dolphin SAT

Related practice

Build the surrounding skills

SAT Sentence Boundaries PracticeSAT Subject-Verb Agreement PracticeSAT Reading and Writing skill hub

Skill cluster

Keep practicing SAT Reading and Writing

SAT Reading and Writing skill hubSAT Transitions PracticeSAT Command of Evidence PracticeSAT Words in Context PracticeSAT Subject-Verb Agreement PracticeSAT Sentence Boundaries PracticeSAT Rhetorical Synthesis PracticeSAT Central Ideas PracticeSAT Apostrophes and Possessives PracticeSAT Text Structure PracticeSAT Inference Questions PracticeSAT Pronoun Antecedent PracticeSAT Verb Tense PracticeSAT Commas PracticeSAT Semicolons and Colons PracticeSAT Parallel Structure PracticeSAT Logical Transitions PracticeSAT Boundaries Between Clauses PracticeSAT Main Idea PracticeSAT Evidence Support PracticeSAT Vocabulary in Context PracticeSAT Cross-Text Connections PracticeSAT Quantitative Evidence PracticeSAT Math Practice PagesDolphin SAT study guidesSAT score guides by college

FAQ

Questions about SAT Modifiers Practice

What is a dangling modifier?

It is a modifying phrase whose intended subject is missing or is not the noun that follows the phrase.

How does the SAT test modifier placement?

It often changes the noun beside a descriptive phrase, creating choices that are grammatical but logically impossible.