The coach told the players that they should get a lot of sleep, not eat too much, and do some warm-up exercises before the game. 5. 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. This can happen at the word, phrase, or clause level. ', 'Daniel spent his Saturday afternoon cooking chili, then he watched football, and took a nap. Not only should the words and phrases match in structure but in tense as well. - Definition & Examples, Basics of Writing Essays in 11th Grade: Help and Review, Reading and Understanding Essays in 11th Grade: Help and Review, Using Source Materials - 11th Grade English: Help and Review, Conventions in 11th Grade Writing - Usage: Help and Review, Elements of 11th Grade Grammar: Help and Review, 11th Grade Grammar Usage: Help and Review, Punctuation in 11th Grade Writing: Help and Review, EPT: CSU English Language Arts Placement Exam, AP English Language: Homework Help Resource, Common Core ELA Grade 8 - Writing: Standards, CAHSEE English Exam: Test Prep & Study Guide, Common Core ELA Grade 8 - Language: Standards, Common Core ELA Grade 8 - Literature: Standards, Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators: Reading (5713) Prep, Parallelism: How to Write and Identify Parallel Sentences, What is Faulty Parallelism? From our brand new residence halls to our groundbreaking Not Parallel:Not only did Mrs.Carter give the class a smolderinglook, but shealso was assigning50extra pages of homework as punishment for everyone who failed to pass their assignments on time. Lists after a colon or bulleted lists Be sure to keep all the elements in a list in the same form.Not Parallel: The dictionary can be used for these purposes: to find word meanings, pronunciations, correct spellings, and looking up irregular verbs.Parallel: The dictionary can be used for these purposes: to find word meanings, pronunciations, correct spellings, and irregular verbs. Notice that the first three sentences, which start in a similar way, while the next phrases follow another, similarstructure. Listen to the sound of the items in a list or the items being compared. copyright 2003-2023 Study.com. Run-On Sentences Overview & Examples | What is a Run-On Sentence? Privacy Statement | Accessibility. Should the students use pens or a pencil? Note for Purdue Students: Schedule a consultation at the on-campus writing lab to get more in-depth writing help from one of our tutors. What will you do at NMU? Centralized systems are becoming increasingly vulnerable. The managerwanted to make sure that Jane made her marketing presentation creatively, effectively, and persuasively. Determine if the example uses parallel structure correctly; if not, correct the example. A value propositionsummarizes how you will deliver your brand promise and how your offering will deliver value to your customers. You may also see flow chart examples. parallel structure. Dalia Y.: Dalia is an English Major and linguistics expert with an additional degree in Psychology. Maintaining parallelism helps writers avoid grammatically incorrect sentences. Be sure to keep all the elements in a list in the same form. 286 lessons The second noun was changed to a plural noun to create parallel structure. On weekends, I enjoy going to the beach, cuddling up with a good book, and drinking hot chocolate by the fire. These correlative conjunctionsmust have equal grammatical units applied after both parts of the conjunction. 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. For example: Harry likes swimming, the theatre and to go for hikes. Figure out which parts of speech are being compared, and check for continuity. All the items in this example are nouns. Two things likely happened when you decided to click and read this piece about parallel structure. But when proofreading for parallelism, you need to be extra careful in regards to how these sentences are constructed. Parallel structure is a writing technique that uses word patterns to demonstrate equal importance of two or more similar items or ideas. - Definition & Examples, Reverse Personification: Definition & Examples, Sir Thomas Wyatt: Biography, Poems & Sonnets, The Aspern Papers by Henry James: Summary & Analysis, The Pickwick Papers by Dickens: Summary & Overview, Working Scholars Bringing Tuition-Free College to the Community. noun, verb, noun, noun or verb, verb, participle). There are two reasons it is important to maintain parallelism in a series: Sentences that maintain parallelism are much easier to read and process than those that do not. The examples below mix tenses. This creates fluency in writing and enhances readability by creating a pattern of words in such a way that readers could easily follow. Northern has a distinctive sense of place some refer to it as the upper hand, Expand or Collapse to view popular links for this site, Expand or Collapse to view links grouped by top level headings, Center Contact Information Writing Center Facebook, Center Contact Information Writing Center Instagram, Center Contact Information Writing Center YouTube, Research & reference organizational tools, William N. Pennington Student Achievement Center. ", (Note: You can use "to" before all the verbs in a sentence or only before the first one.). View accessible formats for documents on this page. The teacher said that he was a poor student because he waited until the last minute to study for the exam, completed his lab problems in a careless manner, and lacked motivation. What is parallel structure? If you have several items in a list, put them in a column and evaluate the first words to see if they're parallel. Maintaining parallelism helps writers avoid grammatically incorrect sentences. Parallel structure helps writers organize and clarify their thoughts. Try refreshing the page, or contact customer support. The salesman expected that he would present his product at the meeting, that he would have time to show his slide presentation, and that questions would be asked by prospective buyers. If you are unsure if a sentence is parallel and has grammatically correct structure, try making a bullet-point list like the one above. Though the way these sentences are structured never really mattered during our early years at school, as we grew older, we came to learn just how important it is to construct proper sentences for better communication. Parallel structure requires that all ideas shared in a sentence have equal grammatical value. That being said, here are some everyday examples of a parallel structure: As much as we use parallel structures during everyday conversations, many literary writers use parallel structures to deliver their ideas in a way that readers could fully grasp as well. Parallel: I enjoy neither exercising nor playing video games. The grammar error becomes clear when you make a bullet-point list of each item following the part of the sentence that each item is meant to complete: The computers ability to usability improved is a grammatically incorrect sentence because all words following the phrase the computers ability must be verbs, but usability is a noun. Many tests, including the SAT, will require you to identify parallel structure errors as a means of testing your writing abilities. Wording that indicates parallel construction in these examples is bold. With parallel structure, increased comprehension comes from an increase in readability. ', 'Louise will be swimming, then bike, and run this weekend in her triathlon. The paragraph above contains a number of parallel structures that not only gives a balance to ones writing but also provides a grace to the passage by complementing its readability. elements of a science essay How to Develop a Strong Digital Brand for Your Business, 8 Content Marketing Housekeeping Items to Do In the New Year, Content Marketing Rewind: The Top Content Marketing Trends from 2022, Top 7 Tips to Enhance Your Content Marketing Operations in the New Year, 7 Mistakes Companies Make with Their Content Production Strategy and Planning, Why a Clear Content Production Approach is Critical for Your Content Strategy, Get Ahead of the Curve: How to Prep Your Content Operations for 2023, 28 Companies With Even Catchier Slogans and Tag, 250+ Hashtags and Days of Observance for Your 2, Word Count Trends in 25+ Industries: VoiceGraph, Head-to-Head Review: Google Forms vs. SurveyMon, What Is Teamlancing? Northern offers its 7,600 students an abundance of opportunities to explore their interests This helps writers clearly communicate ideas and makes the writing sound formal and elegant. Not Parallel: David liked to dive better than swimming. Not Parallel: To be Graces friend means being constantly alert. Parallel structure should be used when writing clauses. Parallel Structure is also important in a displayed list of items. 1. Parallel structure provides balance and clarity. On weekends, I enjoy going to the beach, cuddling up with a good book, and hot chocolate by the fire. When that pattern is broken, it creates a disruptive reading experience. 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. Ritas chores include dusting, to take out the trash, and having to feed the dog. Not Parallel: I enjoy neither exercise or playing video games. When demonstrating these benefits, the consistency of parallel form makes the messaging delivery seamless for your audience. Parallel structure is essential for communicating value props consistently. Not Parallel:Jonathan enjoys hiking, swimming, and outdoor activities.Parallel:Jonathan enjoys hiking, swimming, and beingactive. Parallel structure creates balance in a sentence by using the same patterns and parts of speech when two or more ideas have the same level of importance. Not Parallel:My little brothernot only likes to play catch, but also chase frogs.Parallel:My little brothernot only likes to play catch, but he also likes to chase frogs. Not Parallel:Either you like performing or you dont like to perform.Parallel:Either you like performing or you dont like performing. For example, the parallel construction in a sentence will break if you combine a gerund (a form of the verb ending in -ing) with an infinitive (a form . 1. For example, do you hear an ing word beginning each item? Be sure to add a period where required or the sentence will be marked as incorrect. All elements are described in the same grammatical context, making the message easier to read and understand. The problematic wording is italicized. It should be "played" since the sentence specifies this took place in the past. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice. It means using the same pattern of words to convey that two or more ideas share the same level of importance. Hannahis responsible for stocking merchandise, taking orders for delivery, and giving out vouchers around the block. Parallel: Esther said she would rather pay for her education than receive financial aid. Yes! 'Louise will swim, bike, and run this weekend at her triathlon. Not Parallel: Writing Letters of Recommendation for Students, Higher Order Concerns (HOCs) and Lower Order Concerns (LOCs), Dangling Modifiers and How To Correct Them, Overview of Two-Part (Phrasal) Verbs (Idioms), Comparing Gerunds, Participles, and Infinitives. Not Parallel:Every morning, I make my bed, drinking coffee, and brush my teeth.Parallel:Every morning, I make my bed, drink coffee, and brush my teeth. Not Parallel: Ben not only wants fame but also money. The terms that should be parallel, but are not, are italicized. 20 chapters | Parallel construction is all about mastering patterns, so it helps to understand the different types of parallel structure and a few things to avoid. Also important is whats happening on the surface the words on the page. - Types, Examples & Definitions, What is Catharsis? This is an example of parallel structure. In these lines, the parallel structures use repetition to lay emphasis, and help the readers to memorize the sentences easily. Use parallel structures to connect to phrases or clauses with a correlative conjunction such as eitheror, not onlybut also, ifthen, neither thisnor. Being compared, and outdoor activities.Parallel: Jonathan enjoys hiking, swimming, then watched. Run-On sentence has grammatically correct structure, increased comprehension comes from an increase in readability use to. These sentences are constructed spent his Saturday afternoon cooking chili, then bike and. And clarify their thoughts Types, Examples & Definitions, What is a writing that. For parallel structure in coming to our senses audience in Psychology and drinking hot chocolate by the fire on the surface the words on the,. Speech are being compared, and hot chocolate by the fire video games fluency in and! Readers to memorize the sentences easily with parallel structure requires that all ideas shared in a way. 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