A PRIMER ON NOUN PHRASES AND NOUN MODIFIERS

NOUN PHRASE
In our article Noun modifiers can modify slightly far away nouns, we say that the noun
modifiers if preceded by a noun phrase can modify the head of the noun phrase. Through this
article we will understand what these noun phrases and noun modifiers are so that we can
quickly identify them and ascertain their roles in modification.
So lets first begin with noun phrases. Now even before we start with noun phrase, let us
quickly take a look at the definition of noun.
NOUN A noun is word used to show a place, a person, a thing, or an idea (abstract noun).
Now lets understand what a noun phrase is.
NOUN PHRASE - A noun phrase is a group of words that consists of a noun and a
modifier that modifies that noun. Study the table for examples:

E
a

the en

Jimm

STRUCTURE OF NOUN PHRASE

In the above three examples, we see that the first and the second examples starts with a
modifier first followed by the noun, whereas the second example starts with the noun
followed by a modifier. So, in a noun phrase, the modifier can be placed either after or before
the noun it refers to. A noun phrase can start with either a noun or a noun modifier.
Following are the types of modifiers that come before the noun to make a noun phrase:

Poss

Posses

Following are the examples of the modifiers that come after the noun in a noun phrase:
TYPES

EXAMPLES

EXPLANATION
1.

Prepositional
phrases

1.
2.

the engine of the car

the man behind the
fence

of the car start with of

& hence is a prepositional
phrase. It gives information
about the noun the engine
2.
Prepositional phrase
behind the fence gives
information about the man, a
noun.
1.

1.
Relative pronoun
clause

the cat that has

stripes
2.
the author who
wrote the book

Although that has stripes

is a clause, together with cat,
the whole entity is a noun
phrase.
2.
The relative clause starting
with who and the author
together make a noun phrase.
1.

1.

the cat sitting on the

table

2.

the guests staying in

room 205

1.

the book kept on the

Verb-ing modifiers
Verb-ed modifiers

Verb-ing modifier
sitting is giving information
about the noun the cat.
2.
staying is giving
information about the guests.
1.

Verb-ed modifier kept

upper shelf
2.
the car driven by a
chauffeur in uniform

is giving information about the

noun the book.
2.
driven is giving
information about the car.

In rare occasions, we do see a noun phrase that starts with a pronoun and is followed by a
modifier modifying that pronoun:

1.

1. We who were famished by then were still stuck in the jungle.

1.

2. Someone very important has asked me to deliver this to you.

1.

3. There is no one intelligent enough to understand the forces of nature.

NOUN MODIFIERS

Now that we know about the noun phrases, we must also know about what all can classify as
noun modifiers that can modify a noun phrase, to be more precise the head of the noun
phrase.
As the name suggests, noun modifiers are the modifiers that modify noun entities. These
noun entities can be a one-word noun or a noun phrase. Since noun modifiers modify noun
entities, they must be placed as close to the entity that they modify as possible to keep the
meaning of the sentence logical and clear.
Following are the kinds of noun modifiers:
TYPES

EXAMPLE

MODIFIER

NOUN
ENTITY

Adjectives

The striped cat jumped

out of the window.

striped

cat

Verb-ing modifiers

The planets circling the

circling the sun

The planets

sun form the solar

system.

Verb-ed modifiers

The book kept on the

table belongs to my
sister.

kept on the
table

The book

Prepositional
phrases

The engine of the

car died down midway

of the car

The engine

Relative Pronoun
Modifiers

The man who is

standing behind the
fence is my trainer.

who is standing
behind the
fence

The man

VARIOUS FUNCTIONS OF VERB-ING WORDS

VERB-ING WORDS THREE FUNCTIONS

We are all familiar with the verb-ing words as clause modifiers when they are preceded by a
comma or placed in the beginning of the sentence and separated from the main clause by a
comma. Following is the overview of various modifications by verb-ing modifier according
to its placement:

We have already written very detailed articles on verb-ing modifiers. Here are the links for
the same:
1.
2.

Usage of Verb Modifiers Part 1

Usage of Verb Modifiers Part 2
But, the function of verb-ing words is not limited to only modifiers. They play various other
roles in a sentence. Take a look at the following three sentences. By the way, they are all
correct sentences, so dont worry about correcting them.

1.

Growing plants is my hobby.

2.

Growing plants in your backward need more care.

3.

I am growing aromatic plants in my garden.

Anyone who aims to score above 700 in GMAT MUST understand the distinctions detailed
out in this article.

COSTLY CONFUSION

In all these three sentences, growing, the verb-ing word, plays three different roles. In the
first sentence, growing is a noun, in the second, its an adjective, and in the last sentence
together with am, it is a verb in present continuous tense. Many a times, test takers fail to

identify the correct role of the verb-ing word because of the complex structure of sentences in
Sentence Correction.

In my experience, students who cannot differentiate between the use of verb-ing word as a
noun and as an adjective end up making Subject Verb Number Agreement error. We have
addressed over 20 such doubts in our internal forums.

Similarly, if students are unable to differentiate between the use of verb-ing word as an
adjective and as a verb, they will toward a grammatical disaster.

Hence, it is necessary to be aware of the various functions of the verb-ing so that our
mistakes do not reflect on our score card.

FUNCTION 1- VERB-ING WORD AS A NOUN

Verb-ing words can function as nouns. But these nouns are little different from conventional
nouns. The verb-ing words function as those nouns that actually denote an action. So such
verb-ing words fall under the category of nouns but unlike conventional nouns, they actually
denote an action. These forms of verb-ing words are popularly known as gerunds. Since at e-

gmat, we refrain from using grammatical jargons, we call the gerunds the verb-ing nouns that
denote action.

Verb-ing words function as Nouns that denote an Action

Now lets study our first example sentence in the light of this

explanation.

1. Growing plants is my hobby.

In this sentence, growing is the verb-ing noun because the word acts a noun and hence is
the subject of the clause, but it also denotes an action. Growing most certainly does not
follow the definition of the conventional noun a thing, place or person as it denotes the
action of growing. Hence, it is a verb-ing noun.

One other thing to note about verb-ing nouns is that they are ALWAYS singular in number
and hence, take singular verb when act as subjects. In our example sentence too, the verb is
singular is as the subject growing is singular.

2. Marketing baby products in the internet world requires a cohesive message to be

spread through traditional print and social media.
In this sentence, marketing, the verb-ing word acts as a noun and forms a big noun phrase
Marketing baby products in the internet world that is the subject of the sentence. Since

marketing is the head of this noun phrase and is a verb-ing noun, it takes singular verb
requires. The number of the nouns entities that follow marketing has no effect on the
number of the verb requires.

Following are the examples of the verb-ing noun in official questions:

1. Eating saltwater fish may significantly reduce the risk of heart attacks and also
aid for sufferers of rheumatoid arthritis and asthma, according to three research studies
published in the New England Journal of Medicine. (OGV2#28)
In this sentence, eating is a verb-ing noun that makes the subject of this sentence. Now, this
sentence uses the verb may reduce that actually does not talk much about the number of the
subject. But if may is removed, then eating will take singular verb reduces.

2. Many policy experts say that shifting a portion of health-benefit costs back to the
workers not only helps to control the employers costs, but also helps to limit medical
spending by making patients more careful consumers. (OGV2#63)
In this official sentence as well, shifting, the verb-ing noun takes singular verb helps in
the idiom not only X but Y.

FUNCTION 2 VERB-ING AS AN ADJECTIVE

Another role that a verb-ing word plays is of an adjective. As an adjective, it provides extra
information of a particular noun entity. These verb-ing words can be present before or after
the noun entity without any comma between the modified noun and the verb-ing adjective.

Verb -ing words function as Adjectives

The verb-ing word in our second example sentence falls in this category.

1. Growing plants in your backyard need more care.

In this sentence, growing is the adjective that presents a characteristic of the plants. What
kind of plants need more care? The plants that are growing.

The thing to notice here is that since the verb-ing word acts as an adjective, it does not have
bearing on the verb of the sentence. The verb needs to agree in number and make sense with
the subject of the sentence. In this case, the subject is plants and hence the verb used is
plural need.

2. Marketing channels that cost more generally provide higher returns.

In this sentence, marketing is the verb-ing adjective that talks about the characteristic of the
channels. The sentence specifically talks about a particular type of channels marketing
channels. Since marketing is just an adjective or a modifier, the noun channels is the
subject in this sentence and takes plural verb provide because the subject is plural.

Similarly, since that refers to the plural channels, it also takes plural verb cost.

Its time to review some official sentences with verb-ing word acting as an adjective:

1. Declining values for farm equipment and land, the collateral against which
farmers borrow to get through the harvest season, are going to force many lenders to
tighten or deny credit this spring. (OGVR2#20)

In this correct official sentence, declining is the adjective that presents additional
information about the noun values The verb-ing word again presents the characteristic of
the value. It talks about the values that decreasing. So the subject of the sentence is values,
a plural noun that takes plural verb are which actually falls in the underlined portion.

So if you mistook declining for noun instead of adjective, you would probably choose the
answer choice that would have is. This is the grammatical fiasco we are talking about.

2. Rising inventories, if not accompanied by corresponding increases in sales,

can lead to production cutbacks that would hamper economic growth. (OG13#14)
We have already seen that test takers do get confused in determining the role of rising in
this one. Clearly, rising here talks about a feature of inventories. The sentence talks about
those inventories that rise. Now here the verb is can lead that does not speak anything
about the number of the noun. But there are a few answer choices that have the singular verb
leads. These answer choices have been explained as incorrect as rising inventories does
not agree in number in with the verb leads.

FUNCTION 3 VERB-ING AS A VERB WITH A HELPING VERB

The function of verb-ing words as verbs is a very popular function. However, there are many
who make the mistake of identifying JUST the verb-ing word as the verb. This is not correct.

Verb-ing words along with helping verbs function as Verbs

One thing we must be aware of is that verbs MUST have a tense. But the verb-ing words just
by themselves do not have any tense. Can you tell what is the tense of eating, drinking,
or dancing. Certainly not.

But you will be able to do so the moment I add some helping verb before these words. Check
it for yourself is eating, was drinking, have been dancing. Right?

So NEVER consider just the verb-ing word as a verb in a sentence. Its time to bring our third
example sentence here:

3. I am growing aromatic plants in my garden.

Here, if we just read the word growing, we would not be able to tell the tense of this word.
It is the helping verb am that tells me that the verb am growing is in simple present
continuous tense. We can never write sentences such as:
1.

Joe eating pizza.

2.

Julia dancing on the stage.

In these sentences, eating and dancing CANNOT be termed as verbs because we dont
know the timeframe of these continuous actions. But adding a helping verb
is/are/were/was/has been/have been etc. will not only make the tense of the verb clear but
also provide a proper verb to make the structure a proper grammatical sentence.

1.
2.

Joe is eating pizza.

Julia was dancing on the stage.
Following is the instance where an e-GMAT student rejected a choice because he thought that
the verb-ing word was a present continuous tense.

As you can recognize, this question is OG13#47. Although choice A is incorrect, the student
rejected that choice because he thought that taking is a present continuous tense.

This is incorrect because here taking is not preceded by any helping verb. We cannot even
determine its tense in absence of the helping verb.

Well, this is just one instance. In our internal forums, we have many more such queries and
analysis where students mistook just the verb-ing word to be continuous tense verb. This
confusion is quite common and can cost you dearly.

Hence, whenever you see a verb-ing word, make sure that you find a preceding helping verb
before declaring it a verb in continuous tense. Do remember that the verb-ing words
CANNOT be verbs without the helping verbs preceding them.

TAKE AWAYS

1.

Verb-ing words can function as a noun that denotes an action, an adjective or as a verb
when preceded by a helping verb.

2.
3.
4.

Verb-ing word functioning as a noun is ALWAYS singular and must take a singular
verb when it is a subject.
Verb-ing word as an adjective bears no effect on the number of the verb.
Verb-ing words just by themselves CANNOT act as verbs. They must be preceded by
a helping verb to act as proper verbs.

USAGE OF VERB-ING MODIFIERS PART 1

VERB-ING MODIFIERS

Verb-ing modifiers are one of the most heavily tested concepts in GMAT, and needless to
mention one of the most dreaded concepts as well. The usage of this modifier often creates
confusions because the function of a verb-ing modifier changes with the change in its
placement in a sentence. This article is aimed at simplifying the usage of this dreaded
modifier and helping you understand the functionality of this modifier better.

But before that, we have a small warm up exercise. Attempt this short quiz and see how well
you understand this concept currently.

QUIZ IT

1 Students have been throwing away healthy meals made available in school
cafeteria by The Los Angeles Unified School District and bringing their own junk food to
school and these forced the district to bring back some of the foods it worked so hard to
replace.

1.

school and these forced

2.

schools, which forced

3.

schools, forcing

2 In three months, biologist Glauco Machado gathered enough information about

large numbers of a relatively unstudied order of arachnids to persuade an ant specialist at the
university to advise him and to publish his first scientific paper.

1.

arachnids to persuade an ant specialist at the university to advise him and to

publish

2.

arachnids, persuading an ant specialist at the university to advise him and

publishing

3.

arachnids persuading an ant specialist at the university to advise him and

publishing
CHECK YOUR ANSWERS

1 C. Correct

2 A. Correct
(Detailed solutions in sections RULE SET #1 and RULE SET #2 respectively)

UNDERSTANDING VERB-ING MODIFIERS

As the name suggests, verb-ing modifiers are the words that are constituted from verbs by
adding ing to them. Essentially, these modifiers modify a particular entity in the sentence.
The modification depends upon the placement of the modifier in the sentence, i.e. where and
how they appear in the sentence. Since these modifiers are made from verbs, they denote
action.

For example:

Mary cooked delicious food, using fresh condiments.

In this sentence, the verb-ing modifier using fresh condiments denotes an action. It
communicates the meaning Mary used fresh condiments.

PLACEMENT OF VERB-ING MODIFIERS

The function played by a verb-ing modifier depends upon where and how it appears in the
sentence. The verb-ing modifiers can take three places in a sentence:
1.

Placed after a clause PRECEDED by a comma,

2.

Placed after a clause NOT PRECEDED by a comma,

3.

In the beginning of a clause followed by a comma.

Needless to say that the function of the verb-ing modifier changes with the change in its
placement in regards to the three structures mentioned above. Lets discuss the first structure
that brings us to our first rule set for this modifier.

FUNCTIONS: RULE SET #1

If the verb-ing modifier appears after a clause and is preceded

by a comma, then it modifies the entire preceding clause. It

a. either presents additional information about the preceding

clause,

b. or presents the result of the preceding clause.

The verb-ing modifier can be placed after a clause and separated from the preceding clause
by a comma.
SIMPLE EXAMPLES: PRESENTING ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Mary made a beautiful bouquet, arranging rare exotic flowers in certain symmetry.
This sentence means that Mary made a beautiful bouquet. And how did she do it? This
question is answered by the verb-ing modifier arranging rare exotic flowers in certain
symmetry. i.e. Mary made a beautiful bouquet BY ARRANGING rare exotic flowers in
certain symmetry.

In this sentence, verb-ing modifier is preceded by a comma. This means that this modifier
modifies the preceding clause. In this sentence, the verb-ing modifier is presenting additional
information about the preceding clause.
GMAT LIKE SENTENCE: PRESENTING ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

For decades now, Illinois Natural History Survey biologists in aluminum skiffs have
scooted up and down the thinly wooded banks of the Illinois river and monitored local fish,
catching, recording, and releasing approximately 150,000 of them a year.

This sentence means that for a very long time now, the INHS biologists have gone to the
banks of the Illinois river in aluminum skiffs and have monitored local fish. And how they
have monitored local fish? They have done so by catching, recording, and releasing some
150,000 fish a year.

In this sentence, all the three verb-ing modifiers (parallel entities) appear in the sentence after
the clause preceded by comma. Hence, they modify the entire preceding clause. Per the
context of this sentence, we know that the three verb-ing modifiers are presenting additional
information about the preceding clause. The three modifiers explain how the biologist did the
job of monitoring local fish. They monitored local fish by catching them, putting them in
records, and releasing them back in the river.
SIMPLE EXAMPLES: PRESENTING RESULT
Now lets look at this one:

Mary made a beautiful bouquet, winning accolades from every one.

This sentence tells us that Mary made a beautiful bouquet. It further explains that this action
resulted in Mary winning a lot of accolades from every one.

In this sentence, the verb-ing modifier appears after the clause preceded by a comma. This
means the modifier will modify the entire preceding clause. In this sentence winning
accolades from every one is presenting the result of the preceding clause.
GMAT LIKE SENTENCE: PRESENTING RESULT
Let us bring our warm-up exercise question #1 here. Let us solve that GMAT like question
to see why the correct answer is correct and how this rule set is applicable in that question.

Q#1 WHY THE CORRECT ANSWER IS CORRECT

Students have been throwing away healthy meals made available in school cafeteria
by The Los Angeles Unified School District and bringing their own junk food to school and
these forced the district to bring back some of the foods it worked so hard to replace.
We will apply the e-GMAT three-step process to solve this problem.

STEP 1: MEANING ANALYSIS

This sentence says that Los Angeles Unified School District added healthy meals to the
school cafeteria. But students have been throwing away these healthy meals and have been
bringing their own junk food. As a result of these actions, the district was forced to bring
back some of the foods it worked so hard to replace.

STEP 2: ERROR ANALYSIS

Lets now split the sentence into clauses to spot the errors:

Students have been throwing away healthy meals made available in school cafeteria
by The Los Angeles Unified School District and bringing their own junk food to school
and these forced the district to bring back some of the foods

it worked so hard to replace.

In the second clause, pronoun these have been used to refer the actions of throwing
healthy meals and bringing junk food. This usage is not correct because these is a
pronoun. It can only refer to a noun or another pronoun. It cannot be used to refer to an action
or a clause.

STEP 3: POE
1.

school and these forced: Incorrect for the reason discussed during error analysis.

2.

schools, which forced: Incorrect. Notice that which is a noun modifier that refers to
the preceding noun or noun phrase. In this choice, which is referring to schools. This is
illogical. Also notice that which is a relative pronoun that abides by the same rules for
pronoun. Hence, which cannot be used to present the result of the preceding clause.

3.

Schools, forcing: Correct. The verb-ing modifier forcing appears in this sentence
preceded by a comma. This means that forcing is modifying the preceding clause. Per the
context of the sentence, comma + forcing, in this choice, is correctly presenting the result of
the preceding clause.

APPLYING RULE SET #1 ON OFFICIAL QUESTION

OG 12 #47
Five fledgling sea eagles left their nests in western Scotland this summer, bringing to 34 the
number of wild birds successfully raised since transplants from Norway began in 1975.
1.

bringing

2.

and brings

3.

and it brings

4.

and it brought

5.

and brought
We will solve this question, using e-gmat three-step process.

STEP 1: MEANING ANALYSIS

The sentence says that this summer, five fledgling sea eagles left their nests in western
Scotland. This action brought to 34 the total number of wild birds that have been successfully
raised since transplants from Norway started in 1975.

STEP 2: ERROR ANALYSIS

Let us split the sentence into clauses to spot the errors.

Five fledgling sea eagles left their nests in western Scotland this summer, bringing to
34 the number of wild birds successfully raised
since transplants from Norway began in 1975.
The only word underlined in this sentence is the verb-ing modifier bringing. This modifier
appears after the main clause preceded by a comma. This means it modifies the preceding
clause. The use of this modifier is correct here because per the context, it presents the result
of the preceding clause one of the functions of the verb-ing when preceded by a comma.
Hence, there is no error in this sentence. This sentence is correct as is.

STEP 3: POE
Through this step we will find out why the other answer choices are incorrect.
1.
2.

3.
1.

bringing: Correct as explained during error analysis.

and brings: Incorrect. brings is not the correct verb tense to refer to an action that
took place in the past. Furthermore, use of comma + and to connect two entities in a list
here two verbs of the same subject is not correct.
and it brings: Incorrect.
Singular pronoun it neither can refer to plural eagles nor can refer to the
preceding clause. A pronoun can only refer to a noun or another pronoun.

2.
4.
5.

Repeats the same verb tense error as in Choice B.

and it brought: Incorrect. Repeats the same pronoun error as in Choice D.
and brought: Incorrect. Use of comma + and to connect two entities in a list here
two verbs of the same subject is not correct.
A POINT TO REMEMBER

As mentioned earlier, verb-ing modifiers are made from verbs and they denote action. Now,
any action needs a doer. In the same way, the verb-ing modifiers also associate with the
subjects of the preceding clause. What we must keep in mind is that the action denoted by
verb-ing must make sense with the subject of the clause. The use of verb-ing is correct only if
it makes sense with the subject of the clause it is modifying.
For example:

Sachin Tendulkar played an exceptionally outstanding innings, making the team win
gloriously.
The sentence means that Sachin played a superbly good innings. And the result of this action
led to the victory of the team in a glorious manner. So, the verb-ing modifier making
preceded by a comma is presenting the result of the preceding clause.

Now, making is an action that needs a subject. Per the rule, it will associate with the subject
of the preceding clause. Now, the subject of the preceding clause Sachin did the action of
playing a superb innings. So the subject is the doer. Hence, making will associate with the

same subject and will suggest that that Sachin made the team win. This association
perfectly makes sense. Because Sachin did make the team win by playing a superb innings.
Hence, the usage of the verb-ing modifier is absolutely correct here.

Now lets take this example:

Joe became the CFO of the company, increasing his pay significantly.
Here the verb-ing modifier increasing appears after the clause and is preceded by a comma.
This means that this modifier will modify the preceding clause either by presenting additional
information about the preceding clause or by presenting the result of the preceding clause.

Now, per the intended meaning of the sentence, Joe became the CFO of the company. This
event led to increase in his salary. Now, the subject of the sentence is Joe. However, he is
not the doer of the verb became. He did not make himself the CFO of the company. Now
look at the verb-ing modifier increasing. Since verb-ing modifier denotes an action and
hence associates with a verb, increasing associates with Joe. The sentence thus means
that Joe became the CFO of the company and as a result he increased his salary. We know
that this is not even a possibility. What resulted in Joes increased salary is the event of his
becoming the CFO.

Hence, even if this sentence appears to be written in appropriate construction, it is incorrect

since here the verb-ing modifier does not make sense with the subject of the preceding
clause. This sentence can be written correctly as follows:

Joe became the CFO of the company, a move that increased his pay significantly.
TAKE AWAYS

1.
2.

3.

Since verb-ing modifiers are made from verbs, they denote action.
When a verb-ing modifier appears after a clause preceded by a comma, then it
modifies the entire preceding clause. It presents either additional information or result of the
preceding clause.
The verb-ing modifier must make sense with the subject of the preceding clause.

USAGE OF VERB-ING MODIFIERS PART II

VERB-ING MODIFIERS

In our first article of verb-ing modifiers, we discussed function of this modifier when used
with a comma. In this article we will explain the function of the verb-ing modifier when the
modifier is placed after the clause and is NOT preceded by a comma. To refresh your
memory, in a sentence there are three general places where this modifier appears. In each
placement, the modifier plays a specific role. These places are:
1.
2.
3.

Placed after a clause PRECEDED by a comma (explained in the first article)

Placed after a clause NOT PRECEDED by a comma (explained in this article)
In the beginning of a clause followed by a comma (Please view the Verb-ing concept)
RULE SET #2

The placement of the verb-ing modifier after a clause without a comma brings us to the
second rule set for this modifier.
Lets understand the application of this rule set through simple examples first.

If the verb-ing modifier appears after a clause and without a

comma, then it modifies the preceding noun or noun phrase.

SIMPLE EXAMPLE

Mary made a beautiful bouquet releasing divine aroma.

In this sentence releasing is a verb-ing modifier that is not preceded by a comma. In this
construction, releasing modifies the preceding noun bouquet. The sentence means that
Mary made a beautiful bouquet and that bouquet releases a divine aroma. So the modifier
describes the noun bouquet.

Understanding Intended meaning is the key: As you would have noticed, the key to
deciding whether to use a verb-ing modifier, and if to use one, whether to use one with a
comma depends on the intended meaning of the sentence. If the logical intended meaning is
such that the verb-ing modifier should modify the preceding noun or noun phrase, then we
should use the verb-ing modifier without a comma. On the other hand, use the verb-ing
modifier with the comma if the authors intention is to express additional information about
the preceding clause or the result of the preceding clause. Either way, to make this
distinction its important to understand the logical intended meaning.

OFFICIAL EXAMPLE

Lets now take an official example and apply the tools that we have learned so far. Note that
in this example we will only analyze the sentence with regards to the verb-ing modifier. The
sentence construction for choices A and B is same as it pertains to the usage of verb-ing
modifier.
OG 12#133 CHOICE B
Last week local shrimpers held a news conference to take some credit for the resurgence of
the rare Kemps ridley turtle, saying that their compliance with laws requiring turtle-excluder
devices on shrimp nets is protecting adult sea turtles.
To decide whether the usage of verb-ing modifier make sense, lets understand the
authors Intended Meaning.

Intended meaning:
To understand the intended meaning, we will split the sentence into clauses to understand its
structure.

Last week local shrimpers held a news conference to take some credit for the
resurgence of the rare Kemps ridley turtle, saying

that their compliance with laws requiring turtle-excluder devices on shrimp nets is
protecting adult sea turtles.
This sentence says that last week local shrimpers called for a news conference. They did so to
take come credit for the resurgence of the rare Kemps ridley turtle. They informed in the
conference that they comply with laws that require turtle-excluder devices on shrimp nets.
This action is protecting adult sea turtles.

The verb-ing modifier requiring is not preceded by a comma and hence correctly
modifies the preceding noun laws. The meaning is clear these laws require the shrimpers
to use turtleexcluder devices on shrimp nets. Therefore, the sentence is correct as it is.

AN INSTANCE IN WHICH VERB-ING IS NOT CORRECT

We will now take an example in which Verb-ing is not correct. This example is from the
exercise of the previous article.
In three months, biologist Glauco Machado gathered enough information about large
numbers of a relatively unstudied order of arachnids to persuade an ant specialist at the
university to advise him, and to publish his first scientific paper.
1.

arachnids to persuade an ant specialist at the university to advise him and to publish

2.

arachnids, persuading an ant specialist at the university to advise him and publishing

3.

arachnids persuading an ant specialist at the university to advise him and publishing

Lets use the tools to determine whether verb-ing modifier makes sense.
STEP 1: (INTENDED) MEANING ANALYSIS
The sentence says that in three months Machado gathered enough information about a huge
number of comparatively unstudied order of arachnids. He gathered all information with two
purposes in mind:
1.

he wanted to persuade an ant specialist at the university to advise him

2.

he wanted to publish his first scientific paper

STEP 2: ERROR ANALYSIS

In three months, biologist Glauco Machado had enough information about large
numbers of a relatively unstudied order of arachnids to persuade an ant specialist at the
university to advise him, and to publish his first scientific paper.
This sentence has just one subject-verb pair, meaning it has only one clause. The SV pair is
accounted for. The purposes of gathering all the information have been correctly written in
to verb form. These two purposes are also correctly joined with and. Hence, there is no
error in this sentence. The sentence is correct as is.
STEP 3: POE
Let us now do the POE to see what makes the other two choices incorrect.

1.

arachnids to persuade an ant specialist at the university to advise him, and to publish:
Correct as we discussed during error analysis.

2.

arachnids, persuading an ant specialist at the university to advise him and publishing:
Incorrect. Here both the verb-ing modifiers are preceded by comma, implying that they
modify the entire preceding clause. Hence, now the sentence means that Machado gathered
all the information and this action resulted into two things:

1.

he persuaded the ant specialist, and

2.

he published his first scientific papers.This is certainly not the intended

meaning of the original sentence. The original sentence talks about purpose. Per this choice,
Machados gathering information actually led to the persuasion of the ant specialist and the
publication of the first scientific paper. Hence, this choice is grammatically correct but
certainly alters the intended meaning and is thus incorrect.

3.

arachnids persuading an ant specialist at the university to advise him and publishing:

Incorrect. In this choice, the verb-ing modifiers appear without comma. Here, both
persuading and publishing modify the preceding noun arachnids. Now, per this choice,
the sentence means that Machado collected information on certain arachnids and these
arachnids did the jobs of persuading the ant specialist and publishing first scientific paper.
This is absolutely illogical. This is a case where verb-ing modifier without a comma does
not make sense.

APPLYING THE RULE SET TO GMATPREP QUESTION

Ok, so now that we understand how to use the new tools that we have learnt, lets add them to
our arsenal and use the e-GMAT 3 step process to solve a GMAT PREP question.

GMAT PREP QUESTION:

In the past several years, astronomers have detected more than 80 massive planets, most of
them as large or larger than Jupiter, which circle other stars.
1.

most of them as large or larger than Jupiter, which circle

2.

most of them as large or larger than Jupiter and circling

3.

most of them at least as large as Jupiter, circling

4.

mostly at least as large as Jupiter, which circle

5.

mostly as large or larger than Jupiter, circling

Let us now apply the e-gmat three-step process to solve this one. We will begin with the first
step that is:

MEANING ANALYSIS:
The sentence says that in the past few years, astronomers have detected more than 80 massive
planets. These massive planets are either as large as Jupiter or larger than Jupiter. These
massive planets also circle other stars.
ERROR ANALYSIS:

In the past several years, astronomers have detected more than 80 massive planets,
most of them as large or larger than Jupiter, which circle other stars.
This sentence uses a mix of two idioms as X as and X larger than in the form of as
large or larger than. This is incorrect. We must use the idiom correctly in its entirety to
present the correct comparison.

Notice the modifier which circle. This relative pronoun modifier modifies the noun
80 massive planets. Some of you may wonder that which circle modifies the closest
noun Jupiter. This is not correct. And this is where logical meaning and understanding the
sentence structure comes to our aid.

Notice that most of them as large or larger than Jupiter is a modifier that provides
additional information about the 80 massive planets. This modifier is encapsulated in a
comma pair. So even if we remove this modifier from the sentence, the meaning will not be
altered. So for the sake of our discussion, lets remove this modifier:

In the past several years, astronomers have detected more than 80 massive planets,
most of them as large or larger than Jupiter, which circle other stars.
Now as you can see, which circle modifies the noun phrase 80 massive planets. Now
this modifier is not written in correct construction since which is typically preceded by a
comma.

Remember that the comma that precedes which does not separate which but is part of the
comma pair that separates the modifier most of themfrom the rest of the sentence.

We will now find the correct choice from the remaining 4 choices.
POE:
1.
2.

most of them as large or larger than Jupiter, which circle: Incorrect for reasons
discussed above.
most of them as large or larger than Jupiter and circling: Incorrect.

1.

This choice repeats the idiom and parallelism errors of choice A.

2.

A modifier is not separated from the entity it modifies by using and.

3.

most of them at least as large as Jupiter, circling: Correct. This choice corrects the
error of choice A by using the correct idiom at least as large as Jupiter to convey the
intended meaning.
Furthermore, notice the use of modifier circling . This modifier modifies the noun
entity that precedes it more than 80 massive planets. As we discussed in the sentence
structure discussion for choice A, this modifier does not modify the immediately preceding
noun Jupiter. This is a verb-ing modifier that is not separated from the preceding clause by
a comma and hence modifies the preceding noun entity.

At this time we should also pay attention to the logical meaning of the sentence. We have
determined already that circling modifies 80 massive planets from grammatical
standpoint. From logical standpoint also, circling must modify 80 massive planets
because it is a universal fact that Jupiter revolves around the Sun and no other star. Hence,
there is no logical way that circling can modify Jupiter. It should modify 80 massive
planets.
1.

2.

mostly at least as large as Jupiter, which circle: Incorrect. Use of mostly is incorrect
here. Now it is an adverb that refers to the adjective following it at least as large as. This is
nonsensical.
mostly as large or larger than Jupiter, circling: Incorrect.

1.

Repeats the same mostly error of choice D.

2.

Repeats the idiom error of choice A.

TAKE AWAYS

There are a few key takeaways that I want you to take from this article.
1.

When the verb-ing modifier is not preceded by a comma, it always modifies the
preceding noun or noun phrase.

2.

To determine whether a verb-ing modifier makes sense, always understand the

authors intended meaning.

3.

The tools that you learned in this article integrate very well with the e-GMAT 3 step
process.
VERB-ED FORMS VERBS OR MODIFIERS

INTRODUCTION
Scientists have recently discovered what could be the largest and oldest living organism on
Earth, a giant fungus that is an interwoven filigree of mushrooms and root like tentacles
spawned by a single fertilized spore some 10,000 years ago and extending for more than 30
acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.

This is probably one of the most discussed problems in GMAT Verbal SC section. This
sentence is a cake walk for those who understand verb-ing and verb-ed modifiers thoroughly,
and is confusing to the hilt for those who have just started to learn these concepts. The
tactfully crafted answer choices of this problem keep bringing this question on various

forums for discussion and detailed explanation. So lets take a look at those interesting
answer choices:
1.

extending

2.

extends

3.

extended

4.

it extended

5.

is extending
In the first glimpse, the sentence looks simple and easy. You scan the sentence, discover the
word spawned, look at conjunction and, think, Oh! Parallelism dude. How simple!,
mark Choice C. But all the excitement is robbed off by the Answer Key page that says Choice
A is the correct answer.

So where did you go wrong? Is not spawned and extended grammatically parallel? They
both have the same structure. The instinct (especially of the non-natives) is to believe that
words with ed are simple past tense verbs. So if you took spawned to be the simple past
tense verb, you looked for the same for extending and marked extended. You got the
incorrect answer.

After a few days of GMAT study introduces the concept of verb-ed modifiers. So you know
that verb-ed words can be verb-ed modifiers as well. So even if you thought that spawned
is a verb-ed modifier and extended should also be the verb-ed modifier because it is
absolutely parallel to spawned, you selected extended just to know that you committed a
mistake.

VERB-ED CAN BE SIMPLE PAST TENSE OR MODIFIER

So, what is happening in this sentence? Extended fits as simple past tense verb as well as
verb-ed modifier and looks parallel to spawned. Then how can extended be incorrect
both ways? Well, confusion is bound to happen when one word can assume more than one

role in different sentences, depending on the context in which they are used. Spawned and
extended can be used as simple past tense verb as well as modifiers. The challenge in the
question is to determine whether spawned and extended are verb-ed modifiers or just the
verb and then decide in what form should extended be used.

Let us study extended first. The root word is extend the past tense of which is
extended.
1.

The company extended the training period for the interns. extended = simple past
tense

2.

The training period extended last year made many interns unhappy. extended as
verb-ed modifier

The same word extended works as verb in sentence a, and as modifier in sentence b.
Most of the words can be written as verb as well as modifier if we add ed to them.
Spawned is also one of them.

If you want to know how to tell whether a verb-ed word is a simple past tense verb or a
modifier, read in the following section about this simple test that will never fail you.

LITMUS TEST

There is a simple test we can perform to find out whether the verb-ed is a verb in simple past
tense or the verb-ed modifier. Lets get a sentence here:
1.

The training period extended last year made many interns unhappy.
Now, the verbs are generally placed near the subjects because the subjects are the doers of the
action denoted by the verb. The subject here is The training period. The next word is
extended. So ask this question: Did the training period do the action of extending?
The answer is No. The action of extension was not done the training period. In other word,

the Subject-Verb pair does not make sense. This tells you that extended is a verb-ed
modifier here and not the verb.

You can always ask the question if the action denoted by the verb placed after the noun entity
has been performed by that noun entity or not. If the answer is yes, then it is verb, else it is
the modifier.

Now let us apply this test on the giant fungus. After cutting the flab, this is the core that we
get:
a giant fungus spawned by a single fertilized pore some 10,000 years ago

So lets ask, did a giant fungus did the action of spawning? The answer is no because it
is clearly mentioned in the sentence that the action of spawning was done by a single
fertilized pore. Hence, it is confirmed that spawned is a verb-ed modifier.

Next we need to determine if extended will actually be parallel to spawned. Note that
extended CAN be a verb-ed modifier. However, we need to find out of this form works in
this sentence:

a giant fungus extended for more than 30 acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.

Did a giant fungus do the job of extension? Yes, it did. It is the giant fungus that extends for
more than 30 acres. This means that extended will work as simple past tense verb in this
sentence. This is the reason why extended is incorrect answer because a verb CANNOT be
parallel to a verb-ed modifier, even if they have the identical structure.

EXERCISE 1
Identify whether the underlined words are verbs or verb-ed modifiers.
1.

Like birds today, Archaeopteryx had feathers that were fully formed.

2.

Our powers of color vision derive from cells in our eyes called cones, three types in
all, each triggered by different wavelengths of light.
3.
As Joel Bregman hoped, dozens of young stars turned up in each of the three dead
galaxiesand as an added surprise, they even appeared in Messier 105.
4.

Dark matter might actually be produced at the energies explored by the worlds most
powerful particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).

HOW VERB-ED MODIFIER IS DERIVED

This section is for those who have the grammarian like quest for knowledge. We will explain
here in detail how verb-ed modifiers are derived. This knowledge is not imperative to take the
GMAT, but is more for personal understanding as to why verb-ed modifiers work the way
they do. So lets bring the sentence with verb-ed modifier back here:

The training period extended last year made many interns unhappy.
Now this sentence can be written as:

The training period that was extended last year made many interns unhappy.
So, we have a relative pronoun clause here that is written in simple past tense in passive
voice. Per the grammar rules, verb-ed modifiers are derived by removing the relative pronoun
modifier that is written in passive voice by removing the relative pronoun and the helping
verb (is/are/am/was/were). Hence we derive:
that was extended last year = was extended last year = extended last year

Lets take another example:

A good leader who is followed by the mass and is respected for his benevolent
qualities is always remembered for several generations.

So here we have two relative clauses with passive verbs is followed and is respected.
Lets turn both of them into verb-ed modifiers.
1.

Who is followed by the mass = is followed by the mass = followed by the mass

2.

Who is respected for his benevolent qualities = is respected for his benevolent
qualities = respected for his benevolent qualities

A good leader followed by the mass and respected for his benevolent qualities, is
always remembered for several generations
Notice that active verbs in relative pronoun clause cannot be turned into verb-ed modifiers.
Lets try this:

A leader who guides his followers honestly earns immense respect from the mass.
If we apply the rule to derive verb-ed modifier here, this is what we will get:
Who guides his followers = guides his followers

Notice the limitation with the sentence having a relative pronoun in active voice and simple
present tense. There is no question of getting verb-ed modifier here because originally there is
no verb-ed word in this sentence.

This method will not work even if we change the tense of the above sentence:

A leader who guided his followers honestly earned immense respect from the mass.
Who guided his followers = guided his followers

Now lets put this verb-ed modifier phrase in the sentence:

A leader guided his followers honestly earned immense respect from the mass.
No need to say that this sentence is a fragment because here guided is the simple past tense
verb and not a verb-ed modifier. earned again is a verb . So this sentence has two verbs that
are not connected properly. We landed up this disaster because we tried to make the verb-ed
modifier out of the verb in active voice in the relative clause.

HOW CAN THIS HELP YOU ANSWER GMAT SC?

People who are fluent in the language do not need to know the basics behind the derivation of
the verb-ed modifiers because they intuitively know that sentence 1 is correct but sentence 2
is incorrect. They may not be able to pin point the reason for the same, but they can
distinguish right from wrong. But people who are not that fluent in this language may get
confused about the above. For example, one of the students asked me the following question
about OG12#85:

Can I omit that from this sentence or is that required?

Salt deposits and moisture threaten to destroy the Mohenjo-Daro excavation in

Pakistan, the site of an ancient civilization that flourished at the same time as the
civilizations

The answer = that is required because if you omit it, the sentence will be a run-on
sentence. But consider another version of this sentence:

Salt deposits and moisture threaten to destroy the Mohenjo-Daro excavation in Pakistan, the
site of an ancient civilization that was destroyed multiple times by flooding of Indus river

Now in this sentence, that can be omitted (obviously along with was)

Salt deposits and moisture threaten to destroy the Mohenjo-Daro excavation in Pakistan, the
site of an ancient civilization destroyed multiple times by flooding of Indus river

In essence, this information helps build your knowledge about the sentence structure, which
in turn results in more solid foundation.

SOLUTIONS

Identify whether the underlined words are verbs or verb-ed modifiers.

Like birds today, Archaeopteryx had feathers that were fully formed.
Formed = simple past tense verb. In the relative pronoun clause, that is the subject that
stands for feathers and the verb for this subject is were formed.

Our powers of color vision are derived from cells in our eyes called cones, three types
in all, each triggered by different wavelengths of light.
Called & triggered = verb-ed modifier

Litmus Test: Did the eyes do the action of calling? No. Hence, its a modifier.

Did each do the job of triggering? No. Different wavelengths of light did that job. Hence,
triggered is the modifier.

As Joel Bregman hoped, dozens of young stars turned up in each of the three dead
galaxiesand as an added surprise, they even appeared in Messier 105.
Hoped, turned & appeared = simple past tense verbs for subjects Joel Bregman, dozens of
young stars and they respectively.

Added = modifier that modifies surprise.

Dark matter might actually be produced at the energies explored by the worlds most
powerful particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).
Explored = verb-ed modifier

Litmus Test: Will the energies do the job of exploring? No. The worlds most powerful
particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider might do that action. Hence, explored is the
modifier.

A leader guided by sound principles earned immense respect from the masses.
Guided = verb-ed modifier, earned = simple past tense verb for the subject A leader.

Litmus Test: Did a leader do the action of guiding? In this context, no. Sound principles
guided a leader. Hence, guided is the modifier.

A company founded on sound business principles achieves much higher success.

Founded = verb-ed modifier

Litmus Test: Did a company do the action of founding? In this context no. May be the
founder of the company did that job. Hence, founded is the verb-ed modifier.

The lamp decorated with stars filled the childs room with innocent beauty.
Decorated = verb-ed modifier, filled = simple past tense verb for the subject The lamp.

Litmus Test: Did the lamp do the action of decorating. No. Hence, it is the modifier.

Correct these sentences if you feel they are incorrect.

1. The lamp decorated the childs room filled his room with innocent beauty. = Incorrect

Correct = The lamp that decorated the childs room filled his room with innocent
beauty.
2. A leader guided his followers earned immense respect from the masses. = Incorrect

Correct = A leader who guided his followers earned immense respect from the masses.

TAKE AWAY

To ascertain whether a Verb-ed form (in the correct sentence) plays the role of a verb or a
modifier, ask the question Is the subject of the sentence, the doer of the action? If the
answer is no, then the verb-ed form will most likely play the role of a modifier.
VERB-ED MODIFIERS CANNOT JUMP OVER VERBS

Recently, I came across a thread where the posters were discussing whether a comma + verbed modifier placed after a clause can jump over the Verb and modify the Subject.

I have written the following articles on the usage of Verb-ed Modifiers.

Verb-ed vs Verb-ing Modifiers
Verb-ed Forms Verbs or Modifiers
As I have earlier mentioned in my articles on verb-ed modifiers, they are noun modifiers, and
on GMAT they ALWAYS refer to the immediate preceding noun entity. Now this preceding
entity can be a single noun word or a noun phrase.

If the immediate preceding noun entity is a noun phrase, then the verb-ed modifier may
modify the head of this noun phrase if the context of the sentence so demands. This
modification has been dealt with in great details in the article Noun modifiers can modify
slightly far away noun. Click here to access.

VERB-ED MODIFIERS OUTSIDE THE GMAT WORLD

Outside the GMAT verbal, in general English language, we may come across instances where
a comma + verb-ed modifier modifies the Subject of the preceding clause or for that matter,
even the entire preceding clause. You may see these usages in articles from popular
publications such as The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Economists, etc.

WE CARE FOR GMAT USAGE

Now lets get back to the interesting question of the thread I mentioned in the beginning of
this article (the inspiration for this article) can a comma + verb-ed modifier placed after a
clause modify the Subject of the preceding clause? My research of official questions let me
say it confidently NO. There is not a single official question in which I have seen this
usage. If placed after a clause, comma or no comma, verb-ed modifier always modifies the
immediate preceding clause.

VERB-ED MODIFIER DOES REFER TO THE SUBJECT

However when a verb-ed modifier begins a sentence, it ALWAYS modifies the Subject of the
clause. We have plethora of official questions where we can see this usage. This is the most
appropriate way to use the verb-ed modifier to modify the Subject of the clause. And yes, this
usage is widely tested too. Here comes one of those many questions that test you on this
usage.
This is OG12#25:
Based on accounts of various ancient writers, scholars have painted a sketchy picture of the
activities of an all-female cult that, perhaps as early as the sixth century B.C., worshipped a
goddess known in Latin as Bona Dea, the good goddess.
1.
Based on accounts of various ancient writers
2.

Basing it on various ancient writers accounts

3.

With accounts of various ancient writers used for a basis

4.

By the accounts of various ancient writers they used

5.

Using accounts of various ancient writers (Correct answer)

Choice A is incorrect here because Based, the opening verb-ed modifier must refer to the
Subject of the following main clause. The Subject of the main clause is scholars. It is
evident that based does not logically modifies the Subject. We need a proper modifier in
the beginning of the sentence to refer to scholars. This is the reason why Choice E is
correct answer.

Lets take another example where the usage of verb-ed modifier is NOT TESTED. This is the
correct version of OG13#98:
Ranked as one of the most important of Europes young playwrights, Franz Xaver Kroetz has
written forty plays; his workstranslated into over thirty languagesare produced more
often than those of any other contemporary German dramatist.
In this sentence, without any confusion, ranked, the verb-ed modifier modifies the Subject
of the following clause Franz Kroetz. Because ranked is meant to modify Franz
Kroetz, it has been placed in the beginning of the clause and not after the clause.
To reiterate the point I made earlier, because the verb-ed modifier is meant to modify the
Subject of the main clause, Ranked has been placed in the beginning of the clause and
not after the clause.

COMMA BEFORE VERB-ED MODIFIER DOES NOT AFFECT MODIFICATION

Another thing to note is that the comma before the verb-ed modifier has no bearing on the
entity it will modify. On GMAT, verb-ed modifier ALWAYS refers to the immediate
preceding noun. It is not so that if there is comma before the verb-ed modifier placed after the
clause, the verb-ed modifier gets the liberty to jump over the verb to modify the Subject of
the preceding clause.
Lets review OG13#81:
Fossils of the arm of a sloth found in Puerto Rico in 1991, and dated at 34 million years old,
made it the earliest known mammal of the Greater Antilles islands.
1.
sloth found in Puerto Rico in 1991, and dated at 34 million years old, made it the
earliest known mammal of
2.

sloth, that they found in Puerto Rico in 1991, has been dated at 34 million years old,
thus making it the earliest mammal known on

3.

sloth that was found in Puerto Rico in 1991, was dated at 34 million years old, making
this the earliest known mammal of

4.

sloth, found in Puerto Rico in 1991, have been dated at 34 million years old, making
the sloth the earliest known mammal on (Correct answer)

5.

sloth which, found in Puerto Rico in 1991, was dated at 34 million years old, made
the sloth the earliest known mammal of
In the original sentence, the verb-ed modifier found is not preceded by a comma but in
choice D, it has been. Is that one of the reasons why choice D is better than choice A? One
may say that because in choice A, found is not preceded by a comma, this verb-ed modifier
refers to the immediate preceding noun a sloth and not Fossils, the entity that it should
modify. But in choice D, the comma makes all the difference. Now found correctly refers
to Fossils.
Well, if you think this could be a reason, think again. Preceded by a comma or not, found in
both cases refer to the Fossils because that the entity that it is supposed to modify.
Placement of a comma before it does not bring about any change in the entity that is meant to
modify.
Choice A is incorrect for other reasons.

VERB-ED MODIFIER DOES NOT JUMP A VERB

There is no correct official question where verb-ed modifier jumps the verb to modify the
Subject, but here is certainly an incorrect official questions where comma + verb-ed has been
placed after the clause to refer to the Subject of the preceding clause. Let me bring that
official example OG13#57:
Many of the earliest known images of Hindu deities in India date from the time of the
Kushan Empire, fashioned either from the spotted sandstone of Mathura or Gandharan grey
schist.
1.
Empire, fashioned either from the spotted sandstone of Mathura or
2.

Empire, fashioned from either the spotted sandstone of Mathura or from

3.

Empire, either fashioned from the spotted sandstone of Mathura or

4.

Empire and either fashioned from the spotted sandstone of Mathura or from

5.

Empire and were fashioned either from the spotted sandstone of Mathura or from
If we study this sentence carefully, we will notice that the verb-ed modifier fashioned is
meant to modify the Subject of the preceding clause Many of the earliest known images of
Hindu deities. This usage has been declared incorrect because per the OG explanation

fashioned suggests that the Empire (the closest noun), not the images of the deities, was
fashioned out of those materials.
From this explanation, we can understand that on GMAT, verb-ed modifier is used to
modify the closest noun. If the verb-ed modifier placed after a clause is meant to refer to
the Subject of the preceding clause, then it cannot be called the closest noun, especially if
there is a noun immediately before the verb-ed modifier.
So we at e-GMAT go by the rule that verb-ed modifier modifies the immediate preceding
noun. If we come across an official sentence where we see otherwise, we will modify our rule
to comply with the GMAT usages.

TAKE AWAYS

1.

In GMAT, a comma + verb-ed modifier placed after a clause cannot refer to the
subject of the preceding clause.

2.

A verb-ed modifier always refers to the preceding noun entity. This noun entity can be
a single noun word or a noun phrase.

NOUN MODIFIERS CAN MODIFY SLIGHTLY FAR AWAY NOUN

Noun modifiers, as the name suggests, modify noun entities. They are generally placed as
close to the noun entity they modify as possible to avoid any ambiguity in modification. This
is necessary for the sentence to convey the logical intended meaning.

In practice, placing the modifier as close to the noun entity as possible has become placing
the modifier immediately after the noun entity they modify. Now most of the times, this
practice helps us arrive at the correct answer choice. However, this does not mean that a
noun modifier should ALWAYS modify the immediately preceding noun. There are
several instances in which a noun modifier modifies slightly far away noun.

However, since test takers blindly follow this practice or rule, they eliminate answer choices
if they see that it does not make sense for the noun modifier to modify the immediately
preceded noun. And in certain instances this may result in elimination of a correct answer
choice. If you have experienced this while solving SC questions, then this article will be an
eye-opener one for you.

Following are the two OFFICIAL EXAMPLES OF CORRECT SENTENCES in which

the noun modifiers do not modify the immediately preceding noun. They actually modify
the noun that is placed slightly far away

1. Emily Dickinsons letters to Susan Huntington Dickinson, which were written over a
period beginning a few years before Susans marriage to Emilys brother and ending shortly
before Emilys death in 1886, outnumber her letters to anyone else. (OG 13#29, Choice E)

In this sentence, the noun modifier which were written correctly modifies slightly far
away noun letters. It does not modify immediately preceding noun Susan

2. Although she had been known as an effective legislator first in the Texas Senate and later
in the United States House of Representatives, Barbara Jordan did not become a nationally
recognized figure until 1974, when she participated in the hearings on the impeachment of
President Richard Nixon, which were televised nationwide. (GMAT Prep, Choice B)

In this sentence, the noun modifier which were televised correctly modifies slightly far
away noun hearings. It does not modify immediately preceding noun Nixon or
impeachment.

HOW FAR AWAY MODIFICATION MAKES SENSE

The above two sentences confirm that GMAC accepts the usage of noun modifiers
modifying a slightly far away noun. This usage is not uncommon in OG and GMAT Prep SC
problems. So lets see how it makes sense for the noun modifier to modify a noun that does
precede it.
SIMPLE EXAMPLE
Lets start with simple sentences to understand the working behind this usage:

1. The committee chose Mr. Smith, who was the most experienced member, to lead all the
management-related operations.

Needless to say that in this sentence, the relative pronoun who, a noun modifier,
modifies the immediately preceding noun Mr. Smith. The relative pronoun clause is
giving some extra information about Mr. Smith, the entity it modifies.

2. The committee chose Mr. Smith of Left Block, who was the most experienced member, to
lead all the management-related operations.

Many of you will right away discard this sentence as incorrect because who is not
preceded by Mr. Smith, the noun it should logically refer to. Well, this sentence is
absolutely correct. There is no modification error here. Here who correctly modifies Mr.
Smith.

This is so because the newly added prepositional phrase of Left Block is a modifier that
modifies Mr. Smith. So it is placed next to that entity. This prepositional cannot be placed

elsewhere in the sentence without violating the structure and the meaning of the sentence. So
now instead of just Mr. Smith in sentence 1, we have a noun phrase in sentence 2 Mr.
Smith of Left Block. In this scenario, who has the liberty to jump over the preceding
preposition phrase (modifier) to modify the HEAD of this noun phrase Mr. Smith

Additionally, who was the cannot logically and grammatically modify the immediately
preceding noun Left Block.
COMPLEX EXAMPLE

The National Association of Large Distribution Businesses, known as Anged,

appealed to the Supreme Court in Madrid, which then asked the Court of Justice for a ruling
on how to apply European law covering working times.
This is a sentence taken from an article in nytimes.com. In this sentence, the relative pronoun
which is correctly modifying Supreme Court even though it is preceded by a noun entity
Madrid. This modification is absolutely sensical because the prepositional phrase in
Madrid cannot be placed anywhere in the sentence without violating the structure and the
meaning of the sentence. In this case, we now have noun phrase Supreme Court in Madrid
and hence, which has the liberty to jump over the immediately preceding prepositional
phrase (modifier) to modify the head of this noun phrase Supreme Court.

Again, logically it will not make sense for which to modify Madrid. Madrid is a place
that will require where to modify it.
OFFICIAL EXAMPLES
Here we will discuss the correct sentences of the two official problems that we mentioned in
the beginning of the article and will see how in both the sentences the noun modifier modifies
the noun entity that is not placed immediately before it.
OG 13#29
1: Emily Dickinsons letters to Susan Huntington Dickinson, which were written over a
period beginning a few years before Susans marriage to Emilys brother and ending shortly
before Emilys death in 1886, outnumber her letters to anyone else.
MEANING

This sentence talks about EDs letters to her sister in law SHD. These letters that were written
over a period starting from a few years before Susans marriage to Emilys brother and
ending shortly before Emilys death outnumber Emilys letters to anyone else.
MODIFIER ANALYSIS
In this sentence, relative pronoun which correctly modifies letters, a noun entity that is
not placed immediately before which. Now letters is followed by a prepositional phrase
to SHD that modifies the letters. It tells us who the letters were written to. This
prepositional phrase cannot be placed elsewhere in the sentence. So we have a big noun
phrase preceding which EDs letters to SHD. In this case, which has the liberty to
jump over to SHD and modify the head of the big noun phrase. This modification leads to
no ambiguity at all.

Furthermore logically and grammatically it does not make sense to say that SHD was written
over a periodThus, the closest noun cannot be modified by this modifier.
GMAT PREP
2: Although she had been known as an effective legislator first in the Texas Senate and later
in the United States House of Representatives, Barbara Jordan did not become a nationally
recognized figure until 1974, when she participated in the hearings on the impeachment of
President Richard Nixon, which were televised nationwide.
MEANING
This sentence talks about Barbara Jordan. She was known as an effective legislator first in
Texas Senate and then in US House of Representatives. However, she became nationally
recognized figure in 1974, when she participated in the hearings on the impeachment of
President Nixon. These hearing were televised all across the nation.
MODIFIER ANALYSIS
In this sentence, we have two relative pronouns. The first relative pronoun when modifies
the preceding noun 1974. However, the second relative pronoun which does not follow
the suit.

The sentence says that Jordan participated in hearings. What were these hearing about?
These hearings were on the impeachment of President Nixon. The prepositional phrase on

the impeachment modifies the hearings while of President Nixon modifies the
impeachment. The modifiers appear after the entities (all nouns) they modify. Hence,
together we have a huge noun phrase the hearings on the impeachment of President Richard
Nixon. Note that none of these prepositional phrases can be placed anywhere else in the
sentence. So here, which comfortably jumps over both the prepositional phrases to modify
the hearings, an absolutely acceptable usage.

Both the above examples explain how the relative pronouns can modify a slightly far away
noun. The thing to keep in mind is that this rule is applicable to all noun modifiers. Following
is an example of another GMAT Prep problem in which in the correct answer choice, verbing modifier modifies a far-away noun.

3: Like the great navigators who first sailed around the Earth gathering information about its
size and the curvature of its surface, astronomers have made new observations that show with
startling directness the large-scale geometry of the universe. (Choice D)

After reading this one, almost all of you will say that gathering is a verb-ing modifier that
is placed after Earth and is not preceded by a comma. Hence, it must modify Earth. This
modification makes no sense because Earth dis not gather information. The great navigators
did. This sentence is incorrect. BUT IN REALITY, this sentence is absolutely correct. Here is
why.

Structurally, who first sailed around the Earth is a clause. Herewho stands for the great
navigators. Now together the great navigators who first sailed around the Earth is a big
noun phrase (refer to Noun Phrase side box). Many of you may argue that this entity contains
a who clause. How can we classify as a noun phrase. We can classify this as a noun phrase
since it has a noun at its head. It is of the construction Noun + Clause.

The head of this big noun phrase is the great investigators. Now the who clause that
modifies the great investigators cannot be placed anywhere else in the sentence. This gives
gathering, a noun modifier, the liberty to jump over the preceding modifier and modify the

head the great investigators. Hence, gathering in this sentence is correctly modifying
the great investigators.

Futhermore, logically earth cannot gather information.

WHEN FAR AWAY MODIFICATION IS NOT POSSIBLE

So now we know that noun modifiers not only can modify the immediate preceding noun but
also can modify a slightly far-away noun. The modification completely depends on the
context and the structure of the sentence. However, there can be instances where such
modification will not be possible. In such cases, a noun modifier cannot jump over preceding
modifiers to refer to the head of the noun phrases. Lets take a few examples:

SIMPLE EXAMPLE
Lets bring back the simple example that we discussed earlier. In this example, it makes
sense for the noun modifier to modify a slightly far-away noun.

1. The committee chose Mr. Smith of Left Block, who was the most experienced member, to
lead all the management-related operations.

We have already seen how who correctly modifies Mr. Smith in this sentence. Compare
this with the following sentence:

2. The committee chose Mr. Smith in the last meeting, who was the most experienced
member, to lead all the management-related operations.

If you notice, structurally there is no difference between sentences 1 and 2. In both, Mr.
Smith is followed by prepositional phrase. However, the second sentence is not correct.
Here who ends up modifying immediately preceding noun the last meeting, resulting in
modifier error.

This is so because in the last meeting does not modify Mr. Smith. It rather modifies the
action chose. When did the committee choose? It did in the last meeting. This prepositional
phrase can actually be placed right in the beginning of the sentence, after The committee,
or before Mr. Smith to convey the intended meaning. Hence, here who cannot jump over
the preceding noun. Notice how per the context of this sentence, the expression Mr. Smith
in the last meeting is not a noun phrase. Contrast this with the noun phrase in the original
sentence Mr. Smith of Left Block.

COMPLEX EXAMPLE
Here comes the sentence that we have already discussed earlier:

The National Association of Large Distribution Businesses, known as Anged,

appealed to the Supreme Court in Madrid, which then asked the Court of Justice for a ruling
on how to apply European law covering working times.
Compare this one with the following sentence:

The National Association of Large Distribution Businesses, known as Anged,

appealed to the Supreme Court in 2011, which then asked the Court of Justice for a ruling on
how to apply European law covering working times.
The only difference between the above two sentences is that Madrid has been replaced with
2011. Since the structure of both the sentences is identical, the modification in the second
sentence is also correct, right? Wrong.

In this sentence, there is no way which can jump over the preceding prepositional phrase
in 2011 and can modify the Supreme Court. This is so because in 2011 does not
modify the Supreme Court. It modifies the action in the clause appealed. When did the
NALDB appeal to the Supreme Court? It did so in 2011. Hence in 2011 is actually
modifying appealed and not the Supreme Court. So in 2011 cannot make a big noun
phrase with the Supreme Court.

Again, this prepositional phrase can be placed right in the beginning of the sentence, after
Anged, or after appealed. Hence, in this case, it is not possible for which cannot jump
over in 2011 to modify the Supreme Court.

TAKE AWAY

1.

Noun modifiers must be placed as close as possible to the entities they modify to
convey clearly the intended logical meaning of the sentence.

2.

When the context and the structure of the sentence allow, noun modifiers can jump
over preceding modifier to refer to a slightly far-away placed noun.

3.

That noun modifiers can modify a slightly far away noun has been covered in our
concept named Modifiers Relative Pronouns
NOUN + NOUN MODIFIERS CAN MODIFY ANY ENTITY

NOUN + NOUN MODIFIERS

Before we start discussing about the functions of noun + noun modifiers, lets do a little
warm up exercise here. Following are the three sentences. On the basis of the usage of
modifier, identify which of the following are correct.
1.

James created a magnificent design by using latest graphic design tools, a work
acknowledged and appreciated by all investors.

2.

James created a magnificent design by using latest graphic design tools, an

experiment that many feared to do because of the instability in the output resulting from these
tools.

3.

James created a magnificent design by using latest graphic design tools, expensive but
super helpful devices developed especially for minute detailing and elaboration.

NOUN + NOUN MODIFIERS: CONFUSION

All the above mentioned warm up sentences are correct. Well, I would not be surprised to
know that the answer surprised you. The modifier that all the three sentences have here
follows the structure of noun + noun modifier. The usage of this modifier in all the above
mentioned sentences is correct.

1.

James created a magnificent design by using latest graphic design tools, a work
acknowledged and appreciated by all investors.

2.

James created a magnificent design by using latest graphic design tools, an

experiment that many feared to do because of the instability in the output resulting from these
tools.

3.

James created a magnificent design by using latest graphic design tools, expensive but
super helpful devices developed especially for minute detailing and elaboration
Noun + Noun modifiers are very versatile modifiers. Their structure does not restrict their
modification to a particular entity in the sentence like other modifiers such as verb-ed or
verb-ing modifier without a preceding comma that can only refer to the preceding noun
entity.

The noun + noun modifiers are very versatile because despite having a definite structure, they
dont modify an entity in a definite position in the sentence. The noun + noun modifiers can
modify the entire preceding clause, the preceding noun entity, or a noun in the middle of the
sentence. The modification done by these modifiers is completely driven by the context of the
sentence.

This versatility of noun + noun modifiers to modify any aspect in a sentence makes them very
complex and dreaded. The GMAT takers do possess some knowledge of such modifiers and
their functions. However, this complex nature of noun + noun modifiers to be able to modify
just about any aspect in a sentence leaves them confused as to how to identify which
particular entity a noun + noun modifier is referring to in a particular sentence. Hence, they
pray not to encounter these scary modifiers.

Another thing to keep in mind is that a noun + noun modifier must refer to only one entity in
the sentence. If the modification leads to slightest of ambiguity, then the usage of this
modifier will stand incorrect. Lets understand this point through an example:

In the above sentence, a gift that was in her wish list from a very long time is the noun +
noun modifier.
a gift = noun
that was in her wish list from a very long time = noun modifier
Now, in this sentence, there are two equally strong contenders for the modification of this
noun + noun modifier iPhone 4S and iPad 3.

Any one of them qualify to be in Kims wish list. The noun + noun modifier a gift that
will make sense with both the entities. Hence, in this sentence, there is ambiguity about the
modification of noun + noun modifier. Hence use of this modifier here is incorrect.
We can rectify this error by saying:

In this sentence, noun + noun modifier has been replaced by relative pronoun clause. Relative
pronoun which clearly refers to the preceding noun iPad 3, making it clear that this item
was in Kims wish list for a very long time.
We can interchange the devices to denote which article was in Kims wish list for long.
Also, since the modification of noun + noun modifiers is completely context driven, a test
taker may find it extremely difficult to identify the entity this modifier modifies in a sentence
if he/she is unable to understand the intended logical meaning of the sentence.

PURPOSE OF THIS ARTICLE

This article is aimed at doing away with all the fears and confusions related to the usage of
noun + noun modifiers. In this article, we will demonstrate how and in which scenarios, a
Noun + Noun Modifier can be used to modify various entities in the preceding clause
including the entire preceding clause itself. At the end of the article, we have also included a
small quiz for you to check your understanding of this particular modifier.

NOUN + NOUN MODIFIERS: FUNCTION

As already mentioned above, noun + noun modifiers are very versatile modifiers and can
modify an entity in the sentence. This entity can be the immediate preceding noun, a noun in
the middle of the preceding clause, or the entire preceding clause. The modification of noun +
noun modifiers completely depends on the context of the sentence.

Lets discuss the warm up sentences to see how they are correct and the noun + noun
modifier in each sentence is modifying which entity in the sentence and why.

1. NOUN + NOUN MODIFIER: MODIFYING PRECEDING NOUN

Noun + Noun modifier can modify the immediate preceding noun entity if the context of the
sentence demands so. Sentence 3 of the warm up exercise falls into this category.
SIMPLE EXAMPLE:

This sentence means that James created an excellent design by using latest design tools. Then
the modifier explains what kind of tool they are. They are expensive but helpful devices that
are especially created for certain specific tasks.

In this sentence, expensive but super helpful devices developed especially for minute
detailing and elaboration is the noun + noun modifier. Here,

expensive but super helpful devices = noun entity

developed especially for minute detailing and elaboration = noun modifier.

Notice that developed is the verb-ed modifier here that is modifying the preceding noun
entity expensive but super helpful devices.

The noun expensive but super helpful devices can logically refer to the latest graphic
design tools, because there is no other noun entity that it will make sense with. Now
design is another noun in the sentence. However, design cannot be classified as tools.
Hence, logically this modification will not make sense.

Hence, per the context of the sentence, the noun + noun modifier (expensive but super helpful
devices developed especially for minute detailing and elaboration) is modifying the preceding
noun entity (latest graphic design tools) in this sentence because that is the only logical
referent in the main clause.

OFFICIAL EXAMPLE:
OG 12#118 (with correct answer choice C)

In order to understand the modification in this sentence, let us first understand the intended
meaning of the sentence. The sentence says that The WWF has declared that global warming

will create havoc among migratory birds. It will do so by changing the environment in such
ways that will be harmful to their habitats. By the way, global warming is a phenomenon that
most scientists agree is caused by burning of fossil fuels by humans.

In this sentence, a phenomenon that most scientists agree is caused by human beings
burning of fossil fuels is the noun + noun modifier.

a phenomenon = noun entity

that most scientists agree is caused by human beings burning of fossil fuels = noun modifier
The noun modifier in this structure is a relative pronoun that clause. Here that refers to a
phenomenon, the preceding noun.
So, logically what can be referred as a phenomenon in this sentence? The WWF can
certainly be not classified as a phenomenon. So this noun is ruled out.

Again, can a phenomenon be attributed to the action of declaring by the WWF? Certainly
not because it does not make sense to say that the declaration is a phenomenon that most
scientist agree is caused by a certain activity of humans. So this entity is also rejected.

Can global warming be called a phenomenon that most scientists agree is cause by
humans? By all means, yes. It is the phenomenon that has cause by humans burning of fossil
fuel.

Hence, per the context of the sentence, the noun + noun modifier is actually talking about the
preceding noun entity global warming in that it is giving additional information about
global warming which a phenomenon, an incident. The noun + noun modifier is referring to
the immediate preceding noun in this official sentence.

2. NOUN + NOUN MODIFIER: MODIFYING NOUN IN MIDDLE

A noun + noun modifier can easily modify a noun entity in the middle of the preceding
clause, provided the context of the sentence demands such modification. The versatility of
this modifier allows it zoom into any entity of the preceding clause to modify it. Lets
understand this by examples.
SIMPLE EXAMPLE:
Sentence 2 of the warm up exercise falls into this category.

As usual, lets first get the meaning of this sentence. The sentence says that James created an
excellent design, using latest graphic design tools. It was a work that was acknowledged and
appreciated by all investors.

In this sentence, a work acknowledged and appreciated by all investors is the noun + noun
modifier.

a work = noun entity acknowledged and appreciated by all investors = noun modifier (verbed modifier) that modifies the preceding noun.

Per the context, the noun entity a work must refer to refer to a logical entity. Now, the only
logical entity to which a work acknowledged can be logically attributed to is a
magnificent design. This is the work that James did.

Now lets ask, is it possible for this noun + noun modifier to refer to the preceding noun
latest graphic design tools? Logically, no its not. Tools cannot be called a work. Their
creation can be classified as work but tools themselves are not work.

So, per the logical context of the sentence, a work acknowledged modifies a noun that
appears somewhere in the middle of the preceding clause.

OFFICIAL EXAMPLE:
OG 12#48 (with correct answer choice B)

Lets take the first step. Lets first understand the meaning of this sentence. The sentence says
that in 1713, Pope started translating the Iliad. This work of translation took him seven years.
Johnson pronounced this work the greatest translation in any language.

So as identified already, a work,,, any language is the noun + noun modifier in this
sentence.

a work = noun entity

that took any language = noun modifier (relative pronoun that clause modifier)
There are two nouns before a work that this modifier can refer to translation and
Iliad. Lets first analyze the modification with translation. It makes absolute sense for a
work to refer to translation because translation is the work that Pope did and this is the
work that took him seven years too. Also, it is the translation only that Johnson pronounced
the greatest in any language.

Now lets see if a work can refer to Iliad. Certainly not because Pope did not take seven
years to finish Iliad. He took that long to translate Iliad. Also, Johnson did not call the Iliad
the greatest translation. He called Iliads translation, done by Pope, the greatest in any
language.

Hence, logically it makes sense for a work,,, any language, a noun + noun modifier to refer
to translation, a noun entity somewhere in the middle of the preceding clause.

3. NOUN + NOUN MODIFIER: MODIFYING PRECEDING CLAUSE

Another entity that a noun + noun modifier can refer to is the entire preceding clause, if the
context demands such modification. In this case, the noun + noun modifier will not refer to
any particular entity but to the subject and the verb of the preceding clause. Lets see how.
SIMPLE EXAMPLE:
Sentence 2 of the warm up exercise falls into this classification.

Lets understand the meaning first. James created an excellent design, using latest graphic
design tools. This creation of the design by using latest design tools was an experiment that
many were scared to do because the results that were obtained by using these tools were not
stable.

As already highlighted in green, an experiment these tools is the noun + noun modifier.

an experiment = noun entity

that may these tools = noun modifier (relative pronoun that clause modifier)
So lets consider and analyze the possible entities this noun + noun modifier can refer to.

This noun + noun modifier cannot refer to the immediate preceding noun because latest
graphic design tools are no experiment. They are tools, kind of devices used for certain
activities. Hence, this modification is logically impossible.

What about a noun entity in the middle of the preceding clause design? Well, same logic
again. Design itself is not an experiment that many were afraid to do. Hence, this entity is
rejected too.

However, it does make sense to for this modifier to modify the entire preceding clause
because James creation of the design by using the graphic design tools was an experiment
because of the reason stated in the sentence. Hence, per the context of the sentence, this noun
+ noun modifier refers to the entire preceding clause in this sentence.

OFFICIAL EXAMPLE:
OG 12#83 (with correct answer choice B)

Performing the ritual, lets first understand the meaning of this one. In 2000, just 24 products
were responsible for increase in the money spent on prescriptions. There were two reasons for
this incident:
1.

drugs are becoming more expensive.

2.

doctors are prescribing expensive drugs.

The green portion of the sentence is the noun + noun modifier.

a phenomenon = noun
that is high-cost drugs = noun modifier (relative pronoun that clause modifier)
Is this modifier modifying the preceding noun? It cannot do so because logically
prescriptions drugs is no phenomenon. They are products. Moreover, singular a
phenomenon does not agree in number with plural prescriptions drugs.

Can it modify another noun entity half the increase in spending? Logically it cannot
because this information fails to incorporate the fact that only 24 products are responsible for
this increase. This increase is phenomenal because of the fact that it has been happened
because of the sale of mere 24 drugs.

Hence, it makes sense for the noun + noun modifier in this sentence that to modify the entire
preceding clause. This modification makes it clear why this increase is noteworthy. The noun
modifiers present the reasons for this phenomenal increase in spending.

A QUICK LOOK

TAKE AWAYS

1.

Noun + Noun Modifiers can modify the preceding noun, a noun in the middle of the
preceding clause, or the entire preceding clause itself.

2.

The modification of Noun + Noun Modifiers is completely Context Driven.

VERB-ED MODIFIERS VS VERB-ING MODIFIERS

QUOTE:
Would like to understand minutes difference between these two types of modifiers . Please
correct me if my understanding is not right Clause + Comma + Past Participle

Technically Work as Adverb BUT also modifies the subject of the Clause
Q1 Is it always necessary that Past Participle + Comma need to act as Adverb, Cant
it simply modify the subject ONLY of the main clause look at below construction Diabetes ranks as the nations third leading cause of the death, surpassed only by heart
disease and cancer
Q2 This is valid construction as per OG, not sure why surpassed came after
comma . It is modifying Diabetes so it should come in beginning?
Surpassed only by disease and cancer, Diabetes ranks as the nations third leading cause of
the death
Q3 Can we say that past participle + comma does not need to act as Adverb or
modify whole previous clause ALWAYS and it can modify ONLY subject as well ? Is it true
for present participle?
Q4 What is the difference between present & past participle when these work as
modifiers ? Please explain the difference between two sentences Diabetes ranks as the nations third leading cause of the death, surpassed only by heart
disease and cancer
Diabetes ranks as the nations third leading cause of the death, surpassing only by heart
disease and cancer

This is my response to the question. I hope you will find the content useful.

We at e-gmat call the present participle the verb-ing modifiers and the past participle
the verb-ed modifiers. So here are the rules for these two types of modifiers:
1.
COMMA + verb-ing modifier> modifies the preceding clause.Example: The
engineer identified the problem, using the latest technology. (as you cited)
2.

Verb-ing modifier ONLY > modifies the preceding NOUN or NOUN PHRASE
only.Example: John sat in the minivan carrying seven passengers. (carrying seven
passengers modifies minivans and means that the minivan in which John sat had seven
passengers)
2 also applies to verb-ed modifiers.
Discouraged by the long hours and low pay, my sister finally quit her job. Correct.
My sister, discouraged by the long hours and low pay, finally quit her job. Correct.
My sister finally quit her job, discouraged by the long hours and low pay.
Incorrect as per GMAT rules (Refer to Regular English Vs GMAT section below). Here the
verb-ed modifier is modifying the preceding noun her job which does not make sense.

RULES PART I:

So really speaking these are the rules governing verb-ing & verb-ed modifiers:
Verb-ing modifiers

1.

When separated by comma modifies the preceding clause

2.

When not separated by comma modifiers the preceding noun or noun phrase

Verb-ed Modifiers

1.

Always modify preceding noun or noun phrase.

We have covered this concept in detail in our concept titled Modifiers Verb-ing
Modifiers. This concept is available in the free preview of the e-GMAT SC course. I suggest
you review this concept in the free trial. You will be able to apply the concepts when you take
the post assessment quiz in this file. After that definitely review a few OG sentence
constructions to understand and apply these concepts on the Official Questions.

REGULAR ENGLISH VS. GMAT

The point to be noted here is that in regular English, comma + verb-ed modifiers modify the
preceding clause. They behave in similar manner as do comma + verb-ing modifiers.
However, GMAT goes against this practice as is evident from OG12#56.
Since Official Guides set up the rules here, we incorporate these rules in our course
curriculum and questions. If down the line, OG modifies this question and changes the
explanation, reflecting that comma + verb-ed modifiers modify preceding clause, then we
will change our curriculum and questions based on this rule accordingly.

Here are a few examples from OG12 for verb-ed modifiers:

Verb-ed modifier modifying preceding noun = OG12#28, OG12#56.
In the light of this understanding, let us now analyze OG12#5
Diabetes ranks as the nations third leading cause of death, surpassed only by heart disease
and cancer.
In this sentence, it will not make sense for verb-ed modifier to modify the preceding noun
death. Death cannot be surpassed by anything. Hence, the verb-ed modifier is modifying
noun phrase the nations third leading cause of death. Now the reference makes sense and
the modifier establishes the fact this particular cause of death is surpassed only by heart
disease and cancer.
Notice that diabetes is the the nations third leading cause of death. The verb ranks
stands as is meaning diabetes = the nations third leading cause of death. Hence it is
logical for the verb-ed modifier to modify diabetes also because it is the the nations third
leading cause of death. Structurally, the verb-ed modifier is modifying the preceding noun
phrase the nations third leading cause of death.

RULES PART II

So far we discussed the role of the verb-ed and the verb-ing modifiers placed after the clause
preceded or not by a comma. Now answer to your second question is that verb-ed modifier is
a noun modifier. When placed in the beginning of the sentence followed by a comma, it
always modifies the subject of the clause. Again let me cite your example only:

Discouraged by the long hours and low pay, my sister finally quit her job.

(If you ask the modifier, who was discouraged, the answer will be my sister).
In case of the verb-ing modifiers, when places before the clause separated by a comma they
can modify either the subject or the entire clause, depending upon the context of the sentence.
EXAMPLE:
Singing a beautiful song, Mary mesmerized everyone present in the room. (So how did Mary
mesmerize everyone? By singing a beautiful song. Here the verb-ing modifier is modifying
the entire clause.)
Wearing a blue short, Joe killed the snake. (Here the verb-ing modifier is just giving
additional information about how Joe was dressed. His wearing a blue shirt has nothing to do
with killing the snake.)
THE DIFFERENCE:
Now let us analyze the difference between these two sentences:
Diabetes ranks as the nations third leading cause of the death, surpassed only by heart
disease and cancer.
Diabetes ranks as the nations third leading cause of the death, surpassing only by heart
disease and cancer.
The first sentence is grammatically as well as logically correct. But the second is not
grammatically correct. The first sentence can be rewritten as: Diabetes is the nations third
leading cause of the death that is surpassed only by heart disease and cancer.
Notice that the that clause is written in passive voice because diabetes is not the doer of the
action surpass. It is heart disease and cancer that are the doer of this action.
In the second sentence, surpassing modifies the preceding clause and hence associates with
the subject diabetes. So if we say that Diabetes is X, surpassing only by Y and Z, it will be
wrong because it is not the correct grammatical structure. Use of by is ungrammatical in
this construction. If we remove by from here, then the intended meaning of the sentence
will change. The sentence will then mean that Diabetes surpasses heart diseases and cancer
but it is actually the other way round and that is why diabetes is the nations third leading
cause of death.

TAKE AWAYS

1.

When verb-ing modifier is separated from the clause using a comma, then this
modifier modifies the preceding clause.

2.

When verb-ing modifier is not separated from the clause using a comma, then it
modifies the preceding noun.

3.

When verb-ing modifier is placed in the beginning of the sentence followed by a

comma, then it may modify either the subject of the clause or the entire clause, depending
upon the context of the sentence.

4.
5.

Verb-ed modifier modifies the preceding noun or the noun phrase.

When verb-ed modifier is placed in the beginning of the clause followed by a comma,
then it modifies the subject of the clause.