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Question

Difficulty: MediumMisplaced and Dangling Modifiers

To ensure the introductory phrase 'By heating and cooling the cocoa butter crystals to precise temperatures' modifies the correct subject, complete the sentence by filling in the blank with the appropriate noun phrase: either 'the chocolatier' or 'a glossy finish'.

Answer:By heating and cooling the cocoa butter crystals to precise temperatures, 【the chocolatier】 achieved a glossy finish and a clean snap on the dark chocolate bars.

Answer

the chocolatier
The introductory phrase 'By heating and cooling the cocoa butter crystals to precise temperatures' describes an action. According to grammar rules, the noun immediately following the comma must be the logical subject performing that action. A person, such as the chocolatier, can perform this action, whereas a result, such as a glossy finish, cannot. Therefore, filling the blank with the chocolatier corrects the dangling modifier.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the introductory modifying phrase and the action it describes.
The introductory phrase is 'By heating and cooling the cocoa butter crystals to precise temperatures', which describes the action of temperature manipulation.
An introductory modifying phrase must logically describe the subject that immediately follows the comma.
2
Evaluate the two proposed subjects ('the chocolatier' and 'a glossy finish') to determine which one can logically perform the action.
The chocolatier is the active agent performing the heating and cooling, whereas a glossy finish is an inanimate result of the tempering process.
Placing 'a glossy finish' after the comma would create a dangling modifier, as a finish cannot heat or cool crystals.

Key Concept

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers
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Topics

Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

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