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Question

Difficulty: MediumMisplaced and Dangling Modifiers

Identify the subject that is logically modified by the introductory participial phrase. Which phrase, 'the archaeologist' or 'the coordinates', should fill the blank to ensure the sentence is grammatically correct?

Answer:Having studied the ancient map for hours, 【the archaeologist】 finally identified the entrance to the hidden tomb.

Answer

the archaeologist
The introductory participial phrase 'Having studied the ancient map for hours' describes an action that requires a conscious agent capable of studying. An archaeologist can study a map, whereas 'the coordinates' cannot. Therefore, placing 'the archaeologist' as the subject of the main clause immediately following the comma ensures the modifier is placed correctly and does not dangle.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the introductory modifying phrase 'Having studied the ancient map for hours' to identify the action being performed (studying).
The action of studying requires a logical agent capable of performing this task, such as a person.
To avoid a dangling modifier, the subject immediately following the comma must be the entity performing the action in the introductory phrase.
2
Evaluate the two options ('the archaeologist' and 'the coordinates') to see which one can logically perform the action of studying.
An archaeologist can study a map, while coordinates cannot. Thus, the logical subject is 'the archaeologist'.
Placing 'the coordinates' as the subject would result in a dangling modifier, as coordinates cannot study maps.

Key Concept

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers
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Topics

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

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