Parallel Structure

Parallel Structures

When you present information in a series, it must be stated in the same grammatical form or in a parallel structure. Words must be matched with words, phrases with phrases, and clauses with clauses. Noun must be matched with nouns, adjectives with adjectives, and conjunctions and, but, and or are used to coordinate equally important pieces of information.

Parallel structures mean expressing ideas of equal importance with the same grammatical structures. The series of parallel elements are connected with the connectives and, or, and but, as well as with the paired conjunctions both…and, not only….but also, either…or, and neither…nor.

Examples :

Words with words:

·        Nouns         : We like both the hamburgers and hotdogs.

·        Adjectives    : He felt neither guilty nor sorry for what he had done.

·        Adverbs       : She smiled sweetly and politely.

Phrases with phrases:

·        Infinitives    :

  - Rita wants to teach in kindergarten or (to) write children’s stories.

- We need neither to rush nor to linger; we have a schedule to follow

·        Gerunds      :  Sarah likes both singing and dancing.

·        Verbs                    :

-         After dinner, she cleaned the table and washed the dishes

·        Prepositions : The reward rests not in the task but in the pay.

·        Participial    : Recognizing his weakness but not knowing how to overcome them, he kept making mistakes in his work.

·        Infinitive     :  to complete her paper and (to) do it well, Madonna made a thorough research.

·        Gerund       : Daniel enjoys going to the beach or going to the mountains.

·        Prepositional: His hard work has earned him respect not only from his peers but also from his professors.

·        Verb : he has to finish his studies or leave his parent’s house.

·        Noun : The visitor admire the beautiful landscape and the varied flower collections of the botanical garden.

Below are the strategies concerning parallel structures to answer the TOEFL problems.

1.     Words or phrases in a series linked by connectives and paired conjunction must be in parallel form.

a.      Carol work on her paper day and night.

b.     My father wants to work not for the manager but for the company.

2.     Use paired conjunctions correctly to join words or phrases of parallel structures.

The professor likes not only language but also the plot of the story. 

If you had done read the review of parallel structure, you can do the exercise to develop your writing skill. These are the examples of parallel structure exercise.

Check your understanding :

Find the mistakes in the following sentences. Correct them

1.     Not only adults and teenagers enjoy watching soap operas on Tv.

2.     The play did not only make people laugh but also shedding tears.

3.     Both strength or courage are needed in the competition.

4.     My friends and I neither hate nor enjoyed the math lecture.

5.     Travelling abroad and try out typical foods from different countries are my dreams