Parallelism // Parallel Structure

 

Parallelism is one of the most common and important concepts tested in the SAT and the ACT. Yet, most of us don’t truly understand the basics of parallelism and take this concept for granted.


First, consider parallelism like a mirror.

When words are connected by conjunctions (e.g., FANBOYS / either A or B) or idiomatic phrases (A rather than B), these words should belong to the same part of speech (noun, verb, adjective).


For example, if the first word of a list is a noun, the second/third word should also be nouns.


He is a husband and a son.
 noun noun

 She sings, writes, and dances.
     verb   verb        verb
He is not only rude but also noisy.
     adjective     adjective


Second, understand that, when writing in parallel structure, repeated words can be omitted.



Example 1

 I like to sing and to dance.

can be written as
I like to sing and to dance.

I like to sing and dance.



Example 2

He is singing and is dancing.
can be written as

He is singing and is dancing.
He is singing and dancing.


Parallelism with sentences

Sentences can also be written in parallel structure.

They invested more money, they fixed the problem, and they rebuilt the team.


With the example above, it is also possible to omit the subjects as they all share the same subject.

They invested more money, fixed the problem, and rebuilt the team.


How to read a sentence effectively

As you improve your English, try to read in "grammatical CHUNKS." 

For example, when you read a sentence like
He is a husband and a son.
  (noun) (noun)

You should also be able to read the sentence as
He is A and B.


Reading in grammatical chunks will not only help you see the structure of the sentence but also make the meaning of the sentence clearer.



How to Approach Parallelism Questions

When identifying parallelism, always check the part that is not underlined.


Take a look at the exercise below:


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