We make words or phrases parallel when we are writing things in a list or series, and … These are great examples– I found myself nodding along as I read. Your version is more efficient, but the revision I suggest places emphasis on drama. Parallel structure should be used with infinitives. Parallel Structure Recognize parallel structure when you find it. The cat runs across the garden, jumps over to the plant, and moves down the road. 3. NOT What counts isn't how you look but your behavior. Yes, your version is correct. You need to move swiftly and quietly. Whenever you include a list of actions or items, you must use equal grammatical units. 2. A sentence with parallel construction makes your writing effective, classy, and certain to impress anyone who reads your stuff. More Examples of Parallel Structure. This example is not parallel structure: The words that should be parallel but aren't are shown in italics here. The bold words indicate that parallel construction is used correctly. In these examples, the clauses do not illustrate parallel construction. Writers sometimes think that anything related to the topic at hand is fair game in a list, but it is jarring to a reader to find an item on a list that is not logically consistent in meaning with the other items in that same list. Without parallel structure: I like running, singing, and to read In the parallel structure, all of the objects of “like” are gerunds, –ing verbs acting as nouns. Presumably, the kidnapper drugged his victim shortly after abducting him. The manager told the employees that they need to come to work on time, that they need to manage their workload, and that they need to attend important meetings. In this sentence (and in any sentence), and and also are redundant: “He made his mark both as a professional athlete and as a philanthropist.” (Both is not necessarily required, but it emphasizes the juxtaposition of a professional athlete also being a philanthropist.). You will improve your English in only 5 minutes per day, guaranteed! The sentence is listing three things that Egya likes. Some examples can illustrate this point: 1. You may also see cumulative sentence examples. The following activities can be done at the mall: In your bedroom, you will find the following: Mary wanted to make sure that she made her presentation, Tim was considered to be a good employee because, Mary wanted to make sure she made her presentation, Yesterday we watched a movie, play video games and made pizza. If the first item is a noun, then the following items must also be nouns; if the first item is a verb, then make the other items verbs as well. The problematic wording in these examples is highlighted in italics. Many tests, including the SAT, will require you to identify parallel structure errors as a means of testing your writing abilities. In the corrected form of #4, is the repetition of the word as strictly required? . Parallel structure is also used with correlative conjunctions, such as either ... or, neither ... nor, not only ... but also. Incorrect: The following activities can be done at the mall: buying groceries, eating lunch and bill payment. answer choices At the store my duties are to keep the shelves stocked, to work the registers, and to assist customers. Example 2: Incorrect: The students were unprepared, poorly behaved, and disrupted the class. Example - Parallel: I like to … Daily Writing Tips edit: He’s kidnapped by a masked stranger and drugged and awakes in an unknown facility. “He made his mark as both a professional athlete and a philanthropist.”. These series talk about one common topic. I do think that #5, while obviously an improvement over the original form, could benefit from a further edit. . Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? My edit: He’s kidnapped and drugged by a masked stranger and awakes in an unknown facility. Inc… 4. Now, the list has parallel elements ("underprepared," "behaved," and "disruptive" are all adjectives). Writers often have difficulty constructing sentences so that comparisons, contrasts, and lists, as well as parenthetical elements, are logically arranged. Most are a result of mixing gerunds and infinitive phrases or mixing active and passive voice. Example #1 Example #2 Click on the link below to complete an exercise on parallelism with coordinate conjunctions. Copyright © 2020 Daily Writing Tips . Free practice questions for SAT Writing - Identifying Parallel Structure Errors. “As well as” is not a substitute for and as a link between the penultimate and final items in a list; it signals a transition from a list to a dependent clause (or, in this case, opens a parenthetical phrase, which is merely an interruptive dependent clause): “Like other social media companies, it uses a variety of tools, including spam-fighting technology and automatic identification, as well as reports from users, to help combat abuse.”. A sentence often presents a list of ideas expressed using series of words, phrases, or clauses. Parallel structure, or parallelism, means using the same pattern of words to show that two or more words or ideas are of equal importance. When a single verb applies to both elements in a statement that employs a “not only . but also” construction, it must precede “not only.” Here, however, technology changes one thing and challenges another, so the two verbs are parceled out individually to “not only” and “but also” and must therefore follow those respective phrases: “Technology is transforming virtually every industry, not only changing how firms operate internally and engage their customers but also challenging the underlying business models of entire industries.”. Parallel structure in a series. 3. Finding and Fixing Errors in Parallel Structure Understand the problem. 6 Responses to “5 Types of Parallel-Structure Errors” Curtis Manges on August 30, 2016 12:13 pm. Parallel Structure. Like other social media companies, it uses a variety of tools, including spam-fighting technology, automatic identification as well as reports from users, to help combat abuse. Today we’ll discuss parallel structure and show how faulty parallelism can ruin a sentence without breaking any rules of grammar.. These items are usually joined by commas or semicolons along with and or or. If, for example, we are listing a city’s curfew rules, the penalty for violating those rules would not logically belong in that list. He made his mark both as a professional athlete and also as a philanthropist. Examples of parallel words Examples of parallel phrases Examples of parallel clauses The examples below show how to repair faulty parallelism. Parallel constructor errors are italicized. With the -ing form (gerund) of words:With infinitive phrases:(Note: You can use \"to\" before all the verbs in a sentence or only before the first one.) A failure to create grammatically parallel structures when they are appropriate is referred to as faulty parallelism. He wasn’t aiming for realism but drama. 2. Curtis, I had the same initial thought that you did regarding #3, but I think the “reports from users” bit was set apart in the sentence to identify the different categories of “tools to help combat abuse”: technical strategies that the company can work on (spam-fighting technology and automatic identification) vs. relying on external support (reports from users). Incorrect: My parents did not approve of my actions or what I said. So why not re-structure the sentence so that the two passive verbs (kidnapped and drugged) are side-by-side? If the first item stated in the list is a noun, the following items should also consist of nouns; if the first action is a simple past tense verb, then the succeeding actions must be in the simple past tense form of the verb as well. Here are some examples of errors in parallel structure and how these errors can be fixed. The teacher told the students that they need to get up early in the morning, that they need to sleep properly, and that they need to eat properly. Agua Caliente: If both countries didn't have the same gauge, goods would have to be moved to another train at the border, slowing everything down. Correct: The students were underprepared, poorly behaved, and disruptive. Examples of Parallel Structure Parallel structure can be observed in many forms of writing. Use parallel structure with elements in lists or in a series. Many people like riding, hiking, biking, and swimming. 2. all elements in the series must be written in same grammatical form. Parallel words. 2. To further expand your knowledge about parallel structure in writing, review these examples of parallelism in literature and rhetoric. Which of the following sentences does NOT use parallel structure? Examples Not Parallel. Explore parallel structure examples to better understand the concept. Wording that indicates parallel construction in these examples is bold. Your verb tenses should always match. Faulty parallelism can ruin a … The problematic areas are italicized below. Example: Not Parallel:Traditional societies believed the king to be a religious, a political, a social and head of the military forces. Parallel structure should be used when writing clauses. Parallel structure provides flow in a sentence. Original sentence: He’s kidnapped by a masked stranger, drugged, and awakes in an unknown facility. Copyright © 2020 LoveToKnow. Additional examples of parallel sentence structure include the following: Mother was very busy gathering the laundry, dusting the furniture, and washing the dishes. He’s kidnapped by a masked stranger, drugged, and awakes in an unknown facility. For example: Mary cooked food, laying the table, and cleaning the … Continue reading "Parallelism Errors" When you have items on a list following a colon, the items should all be in the same form in order to avoid a parallel structure error. Correct: In your bedroom, you will find the following: a bed, a closet, and a desk. It seems as though the word could be removed without reducing clarity. Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Like train tracks b… James: The bold terms illustrate parallel construction between the clauses. Problems with parallel structure usually occur after coordinating conjunction such as "or" or "and." In the non-parallel structure, there are two gerunds acting as nouns and one infinitive (to read), which makes the sentence awkward and harder to process. Parallel: Traditional societies believed the king to be a religious, political, social and a military head. Includes full solutions and score reporting. Be consistent and use parallel structure with words that end in -ing. It keeps your writing balanced and makes it easier to read. In grammar, parallelism, also known as parallel structure or parallel construction, is a balance within one or more sentences of similar phrases or clauses that have the same grammatical structure. It should be "played" since the sentence specifies this took place in the past. Phrases and clauses need to be parallel.Parallel Examples with Phrases: 1. All Rights Reserved, They argued not only about the article, but. To do this, use consistent grammatical units. Link to Exercise 1 . Any inconsistency within the list is an error in parallel structure. 4 Responses to “3 Examples of Problems with Parallel Structure” Michael Tevlin on February 15, 2018 2:48 pm. On the word level, a noun should be grouped with other nouns, an adjective with other adjectives, and so on. Keep in mind that parallel structure should be used when it comes to verb tense. A list of items must maintain parallel structure. Correct: My parents did not approve of what I did nor what I said. Parallel: “He likes to swim and to run.” Parallel: “He likes swimming and running.” Once again, the examples above combine gerunds and infinitives. The bold words in these examples are all past tense, which means they are examples of parallel construction. Parallel structure is when you balance the grammatical structures of words, clauses, sentences, or phrases in your writing.. ). The fox runs across the wood, jumps over the rock and moves down the hill. The first two are in the gerund form. The terms that should be parallel, but are not, are italicized. The application of parallelism affects readability and may make texts easier to process.. He likes television shows that have deep characters, interesting stories, and good actors. Emilio walked across the street, down the alley, and through the back door of his apartment. Correct: The following activities can be done at the mall: buying groceries, eating lunch, and paying bills. Use parallel construction when items in a series have an equal level of importance. 5. Technology is transforming virtually every industry, changing not only how firms operate internally and engage their customers, but also challenging the underlying business models of entire industries. Parallel structure refers to same word pattern within a sentence by repeating a chosen grammatical form. The terms that indicate parallel structure are marked in bold. They are important for any kind of writing and speaking in order to maintain coherency. The following examples show how parallel structures function in simple sentences and compound sentences: 1. Even when a colon isn't used to introduce a list, parallel construction is important. 2. Whenever you make a list of items or actions in a sentence, using equal grammatical units is crucial. Errors in parallel structure can make your writing sound strange to listeners. Subscribers get access to our archives with 800+ interactive exercises! 2. 1. For such sentences, we need to maintain parallelism i.e. Incorrect: Please place the leftover chicken on the counter or you can put it in the refrigerator. Abused children commonly exhibit one or more of the following symptoms: withdrawal, rebelliousness, restlessness, and they are … 1. Below is another example of parallel structure: 'Daniel spent his Sunday afternoons cooking chili, watching football, and napping.' Gerunds are verbs that function like nouns and end in "ing". Parallel structure should be used when you connect clauses with a coordinating conjunction such as: for, and, nor, or, but, so, or yet in a sentence. Question about your correction to the third example in your post “3 Examples of Problems with Parallel Structure”: “This regulation helps guarantee that the financial services industry upholds its obligation to protect consumers and ensure that its systems are … I think #3 would work better as: “Like other social media companies, it uses a variety of tools to help combat abuse, including spam-fighting technology, automatic identification, and reports from users.”. My intention was to revise as closely to the original wording as possible, but I should have suggested it as a slightly more concise alternative. In this particular lesson we'll look at parallel words and phrases. Mitch tries his luck on the "Parallel Structure" game show! (The grammatical rule against punctuating in such cases could be relaxed to imply a pause.). In the following examples, note the difference between correct parallel structure and faulty parallelism. All Right Reserved. It emphasizes on the same level of importance of multiple ideas or information given in the same sentence. Bad grammar weakens good writing, but some bad writing is grammatically flawless. Consider this list, which lacks logical parallel meaning: Widgets for the World has develope…