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Question

Difficulty: MediumModifier Placement

The following sentence segments, when combined, should form a single, grammatically correct sentence. Arrange the segments in the correct order to construct a sentence that contains no misplaced or dangling modifiers.

  1. 1Dressed in a sleek tuxedo,
  2. 2the master of ceremonies
  3. 3warmly greeted the patrons
  4. 4who were entering the theater.

Answer

The correct order of the sentence segments is: 'Dressed in a sleek tuxedo, the master of ceremonies warmly greeted the patrons who were entering the theater.'
The correct order places the introductory participial phrase 'Dressed in a sleek tuxedo,' directly before the noun it modifies, 'the master of ceremonies.' It then follows with the main verb phrase 'warmly greeted the patrons' and concludes with the relative clause 'who were entering the theater,' which correctly modifies 'the patrons.' This arrangement ensures that all modifiers are adjacent to their targets and the sentence structure is clear and grammatical.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the introductory modifier.
The phrase 'Dressed in a sleek tuxedo,' is identified as an introductory participial phrase.
Participial phrases at the beginning of a sentence must immediately precede the noun they modify to avoid a dangling modifier.
2
Determine the subject of the modifier.
The noun phrase 'the master of ceremonies' is the logical subject who is dressed in the tuxedo.
Placing this noun phrase directly after the introductory phrase ensures the modifier is placed correctly.
3
Connect the verb and object to complete the main clause.
The verb phrase 'warmly greeted the patrons' follows the subject.
This establishes the core action of the sentence in a natural subject-verb-object order.
4
Place the relative clause next to its antecedent.
The relative clause 'who were entering the theater.' modifies 'the patrons'.
Placing this clause immediately after 'the patrons' prevents it from mismodifying other nouns like the master of ceremonies or the tuxedo.

Key Concept

Modifiers must be placed as close as possible to the words they are intended to modify to ensure clarity and grammatical correctness.
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Topics

Modifier Placement

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