READING THIS sentence, it may occur to you that something is slightly awry with it. Or you may not notice anything wrong at all. The first three words are a “dangling modifier”. This writing fault has ...

Only Slate Plus members can gift Slate stories. Become a member to share 10 free articles a month.Become a Plus Member There’s been a little kerfuffle lately over danglers. Steven Pinker, who is a ...

Now that I have your attention, I’d like to talk about dangling participles. This most famous of danglers is must-know stuff for any self-respecting smarty-pants. Not because the concept will help ...

What is wrong with these sentences? Hopping briskly through the vegetable garden, John saw a toad. Gently warmed in the oven and smothered in cream cheese, my friends loved the bagels. To be really ...

A major quality of good communication is clarity. You should always speak and write in a way that will make the listener or reader to be able to understand your message with little or no hassles.