Parallel Structures

Parallel structure (also called parallelism) is the repetition of a chosen grammatical form within a sentence, i.e. by making each compared item or idea in your sentence follow the same grammatical pattern. Parallelism provides clarity, elegance, and symmetry to what you say.

Words or groups of words linked together with a coordinating or  correlative conjunction are often doing the same job and need to be parallel; for examples,

[1] Noun + noun

  • I like volleyball, soccer, and to play basketball. (Not parallel)
  → I like volleyball, soccer, and basketball. (Parallel)
    (or I like to play volleyball, soccer, and basketball.) (Parallel)

[2] Noun phrase + noun phrase

  • I am allergic to the dog’s hair and how it smells. (Not parallel)
  → I am allergic to the dog’s hair and its smells. (Parallel)

[3] Noun clause + noun clause

  • What counts isn't how you look (noun clause) but your behavior (noun phrase). (Not parallel)
  → What counts isn't how you look but how you behave. (Parallel)

[4] Verb + verb

  • He doesn't have enough time to play sports, doing social work,  and socializing with friends.
  → He doesn't have enough time to play sports, does social work,  and socialize with friends.
  

[5] Adjective + adjective

  • She is smart, beautiful, and care. (Not parallel)
  → She is smart, beautiful, and caring. (Parallel)

[6] Adverb + adverb

  • He made decision slowly and with caution.  (Not parallel)
  → He made decision slowly and cautiously. (Parallel)

[7] Gerund + gerund

  • Mary likes hiking, swimming, and to ride a bicycle. (Not parallel)
  → Mary likes hiking, swimming, and riding a bicycle. (Parallel)

[8] Infinitive + infinitive

  • He intended to read the book , do homework, and research. (Not parallel)
  → He intended to read the book, to do homework, and to conduct research.  (Parallel)

[9] Prepositional phrase + prepositional phrase

  • He looked for the keys in the car, under the bed, and  his bag. (Not parallel)
  → He looked for the keys in the car, under the bed, and in his bag. (Parallel)