Misplaced modifier
SAT glossary · Course Foundations
Definition
A modifier attaches to whatever it sits next to, so position carries meaning. The one-word offenders — only, just, even, almost, nearly — produce a different sentence at each slot: 'Only the director approved the budget' / 'The director only approved' / 'approved only the budget.'
Misplaced modifier in plain English
A misplaced modifier is a descriptive word or phrase that ends up attached to whatever it happens to be sitting right next to in the sentence — meaning its exact POSITION genuinely changes the sentence's meaning. This is especially true of small, easy-to-overlook words like only, just, even, almost, and nearly — moving just one of these words to a different spot creates a genuinely different sentence: 'Only the director approved the budget' (nobody else approved it) versus 'The director only approved the budget' (she didn't do anything else besides approve it) versus 'The director approved only the budget' (she approved that and nothing else).
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