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Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Criminal Sentence 253: With a passion for grammar

From something I edited:

"With a passion for cooking, it is no surprise that she named her organization and productivity consulting firm after a cooking term."

As you should all know by now, this sentence contains a misplaced modifier. "It" doesn't have a passion for cooking! The lady does! Let's reword it:

"It is no surprise that Mary, who has a passion for cooking, named her organization and productivity consulting firm after a cooking term."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think this can be fixed in a less invasive manner. "Having a passion for cooking..."

Anonymous said...

Okay, I see what you're saying about the misplacement. Try then "It is not surprising that, having a passion for cooking, she..."