
I didn’t wear glasses until I was 19. As an up-and-coming visionary word nerd, I had never thought I needed corrective lenses. Of course, I always fancied monocles, although I didn’t know how to keep one in place.
As it turned out, I was near-sighted. I learned this by attending a large lecture hall-format class in college. I found myself squinting to see the professor’s handwritten notes scrawled on the chalkboard. I began to get headaches from the eyestrain.
Soon enough, I went to an optometrist and got my first prescription glasses. Now I look 17% smarter!
You knew a grammar tie-in was coming, and here it is: the headache caused by a squinting modifier. Yes, squinting (or...