A squinting modifier is a word or phrase placed between two parts of a sentence so that it could reasonably modify either one. This leaves the intended meaning unclear.
Consider:
Employees who answer customer messages promptly receive praise.
Does promptly describe how quickly employees answer messages or how quickly they receive praise? Both readings are possible.
If the employees answer promptly:
Employees who promptly answer customer messages receive praise.
If the praise arrives promptly:
Employees who answer customer messages receive praise promptly.
The original sentence is grammatically possible, but moving promptly makes its intended relationship clearer.
Squinting modifiers are a particular type of misplaced modifier. The distinguishing problem is that the modifier sits between two possible targets rather than clearly belonging to one.
Examples of Squinting Modifiers
A squinting modifier often appears where one grammatical expression ends and another begins. Adverbs are common sources of ambiguity, but phrases expressing time can create the same difficulty.
An Adverb Between Two Actions
Technicians inspecting the cables carefully record signs of wear.
The word carefully could describe the inspection or the recording.
If the technicians inspect the cables carefully:
Technicians carefully inspecting the cables record signs of wear.
If they record their findings carefully:
Technicians inspecting the cables record signs of wear carefully.
The two readings make different claims about the technicians’ work. The first concerns how they examine the cables; the second concerns how they document what they find.
Here, the ambiguity occurs where the participial phrase inspecting the cables meets the main verb record.
A Time Expression Between Two Clauses
The museum director announced on Friday the exhibition would close.
The phrase on Friday could identify when the announcement was made or when the exhibition was scheduled to close.
If the announcement happened on Friday:
On Friday, the museum director announced that the exhibition would close.
If the closing was scheduled for Friday:
The museum director announced that the exhibition would close on Friday.
Both situations are plausible, but they report different information. The first establishes the date of the announcement; the second establishes the planned closing date.
The revisions also make the boundary between the two clauses clearer, so readers do not have to infer which event the time expression belongs to.
How to Identify and Fix Squinting Modifiers
The most useful check is whether the word or phrase in the middle can sensibly belong to either side.
If both interpretations are plausible, the next question is what the writer actually meant. Moving a modifier without establishing that meaning can produce a clear sentence that communicates the wrong information.
Consider:
Reviewing the financial statements frequently reveals discrepancies.
The intended message could concern how often the financial statements are reviewed or how often reviews uncover discrepancies.
If the emphasis is on the frequency of reviewing:
Frequent reviews of the financial statements reveal discrepancies.
If the emphasis is on repeated discoveries:
Reviews of the financial statements repeatedly reveal discrepancies.
These revisions are ways of expressing two different intended claims. The choice depends on which claim is true, not on which sentence sounds more elegant.
Often, moving the modifier closer to the expression it describes is enough. When that creates awkward wording, rewriting the sentence may be better.
The important distinction is between clarifying the grammar and changing the facts. A successful correction does the first without accidentally doing the second.
When No Correction Is Needed
Not every modifier between two grammatical expressions creates a meaningful ambiguity.
The coordinator explained during the briefing that the revised schedule would be emailed the following morning.
During the briefing naturally identifies when the coordinator gave the explanation. The email is scheduled for the following morning, so the sentence does not leave readers uncertain about when that event will happen.
Context also matters. A sentence that appears ambiguous in isolation may be clear within a paragraph that establishes the relevant timing or action.
There is no need to move a modifier merely because another grammatical interpretation can be imagined. The alternative reading should be reasonable enough to interfere with the intended meaning.
Squinting vs. Misplaced vs. Dangling Modifiers
Squinting, misplaced, and dangling modifiers all involve relationships between modifying expressions and the words or clauses they describe. The difference is the nature of the problem.
A squinting modifier appears between two possible targets, leaving its intended connection uncertain.
A misplaced modifier is the broader category. A modifying expression may appear in a position that suggests the wrong relationship or creates an ambiguity the writer did not intend.
For example:
The photographer discussed the exhibition with the curator in the courtyard.
The phrase in the courtyard could indicate where the discussion happened or help identify the curator. Its placement makes the intended connection uncertain.
A dangling modifier has no suitable grammatical connection to the person or thing it is intended to describe.
After reviewing the application, several discrepancies became apparent.
Someone reviewed the application, but the main clause does not identify that person as the appropriate subject of the opening phrase.
If the admissions officer performed the review, the sentence could read:
After reviewing the application, the admissions officer noticed several discrepancies.
With squinting modifiers, readers face two plausible connections. With dangling modifiers, the intended grammatical connection is missing or unsuitable.
Practice: Identify and Correct Squinting Modifiers
1. What are the two possible meanings?
Researchers studying the samples regularly report unusual results.
What does regularly describe?
Answer:
It may indicate how often the researchers study the samples:
Researchers regularly studying the samples report unusual results.
Or it may indicate how often they report unusual results:
Researchers studying the samples report unusual results regularly.
Both interpretations are possible. The revision depends on whether the frequency belongs to the studying or the reporting.
2. Correct the sentence without changing the intended meaning
The supervisor confirmed yesterday the inspection would begin.
Suppose the confirmation happened yesterday, but the inspection date was not specified.
Answer:
Yesterday, the supervisor confirmed that the inspection would begin.
The revised sentence establishes when the confirmation occurred without assigning a date to the inspection.
Moving yesterday to the end would create a different claim:
The supervisor confirmed that the inspection would begin yesterday.
That wording would ordinarily be unsuitable for a future inspection and would not preserve the intended meaning.
3. Does this sentence contain a squinting modifier?
After checking the emergency equipment, the safety officer carefully recorded the results.
Answer: No.
After checking the emergency equipment establishes the sequence of events, while carefully describes how the officer recorded the results.
The modifying expressions have clear grammatical relationships. There is no competing interpretation that makes correction necessary.
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