Misplaced Modifiers
The meaning of a sentence can be `modified' by the addition of adjectives or adverbs, phrases or clauses. It is very important to place these modifiers in a position where the meaning is clear.
An often quoted example in Computer Science is this:
The woman saw the man on the hill with a telescope.
Does this mean the woman had a telescope, the man had it, or the hill? There are even more meanings to be derived from this sentence!
Put modifying phrases or words next to their subjects.
If we assume that the woman had the telescope, the above sentence would now read:
The woman with a telescope saw the man on the hill.
