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Transcript

00:04

Initial modifiers, a la Shmoop. Essay got you feelin’ down? Sentences sounding

00:10

more like a funeral march than a symphony in A major?

00:14

Mix it up with… initial modifiers!

00:16

Okay, so…. what IS an initial modifier?

00:21

A modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that can, well, modify your sentence. That is,

00:27

make it better.

00:27

And, just like it sounds, an initial modifier adds a little somethin’ somethin’ to the

00:32

beginning of your sentence.

00:34

It makes your sentence – or sentences, if they can be combined into one -- do some grammatical

00:38

gymnastics, switching up the order of your words, so that your writing has more flow,

00:43

is more interesting…

00:45

… and doesn’t sound like you’re leading your sentences en masse to their deaths.

00:49

There are four types of initial modifiers.

00:53

An initial dependent clause starts your sentence with a word like although, because, or since.

01:00

An initial infinitive phrase opens your sentence with the infinitive of a verb. We’ll explain

01:07

what that is in a bit..

01:08

An initial adverb starts you off with one of those words that end in “l-y” – clearly,

01:15

happily…

01:16

…and finally, an initial participial<<part-uh-sip-ee-uhl>> phrase begins your sentence with the “i-n-g”

01:24

form of a verb. As in, “wanting a better explanation of initial modifiers.”

01:31

Part one: initial dependent clauses.

01:33

Now would be a good time to brush up on your dependent clauses – but it’s basically

01:37

any phrase that can’t stand on its own and starts with one of those words mentioned above.

01:43

Like “because my adorable kitten mistook my laptop for its litterbox.”

01:48

Normally, you’d probably say something like “I don’t have my final paper because my

01:54

adorable kitten mistook my laptop for its litter box…”

01:57

…probably followed by “I’m sorry” and “I don’t understand why you’re giving

02:01

me an F when it’s clearly Cupcake’s fault.”

02:04

A perfect example for why you should use initial modifiers! You’ve got three sentences in

02:09

a row that start with the subject…”I” this, “I” that. Boooring.

02:14

So the initial modifier comes in and shakes things up. The dependent clause moves to the

02:19

front, and you get:

02:20

“Because my adorable kitten mistook my laptop for its litter box, I don’t have my final

02:24

paper.”

02:25

Still kind of a flimsy excuse, but at least it flows better.

02:30

Part two: initial infinitive. An infinitive is just “to” plus a verb. So, you take

02:37

this:

02:38

“I brought in the laptop. I wanted to avoid getting into trouble.”

02:43

That stinks…both grammatically and literally. Stick an infinitive on the front:

02:47

“To avoid getting into trouble, I brought in the laptop.”

02:52

Part three: the initial adverb. An adverb describes how you did something and usually

02:58

ends in “l-y.”

02:59

“I was careful to keep the kitten from peeing on me on the way to school, too.”

03:04

“Carefully keeping him from peeing on me, I brought the kitten to school.”

03:12

And part four: the participial phrase initial modifier – that is, a phrase starting with

03:18

a verb that ends with “i-n-g.”

03:20

Like this:

03:21

“I brought Cupcake as proof. I hope you’ll give me an extension.”

03:25

“Hoping to get an extension, I brought Cukcake as proof.”

03:31

Dang, that is some adorable proof.

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