Question 1

What is parallel structure?

Accepted Answer

Parallel structure means giving joined items the same grammatical shape. In I like swimming, cycling and running, all three items are -ing words, so the list reads smoothly. I like swimming, cycling and to run bumps, because the last item changes shape. It applies to lists, pairs joined by and, or and but, comparisons, and bullet points.

Question 2

What is faulty parallelism?

Accepted Answer

Faulty parallelism, also called a parallelism error, is when items joined together do not match in shape. She is kind, clever and works hard joins two adjectives and a verb phrase. Fix it by matching: She is kind, clever and hard-working. The fault is in form, not meaning, so the sentence is usually understood, but it reads awkwardly and can confuse.

Question 3

How do I fix a list that isn't parallel?

Accepted Answer

Use the Match Test. First, find the joint: and, or, but, either/or, than, or a list. Second, name the shape of each item: noun, -ing phrase, to-phrase, adjective, prepositional phrase or clause. Third, rewrite the odd one to match the rest: reading, writing and to paint becomes reading, writing and painting. Then read each item alone to check it fits.

Question 4

Do I repeat 'to' in a list?

Accepted Answer

Either way is correct. State it once for all items: I want to swim, run and cycle. Or repeat it for every item: I want to swim, to run and to cycle. Repeating adds emphasis or clarity in long lists. What careful writers avoid is the half-repeat: to swim, run and to cycle. The same goes for a, the, in and that.

Question 5

How do I use 'not only... but also' correctly?

Accepted Answer

Put the same kind of item after each part. She not only sings but also dances: two verbs. The course is not only cheap but also useful: two adjectives. Not only in India but also abroad: two phrases. She not only sings but also the tabla does not match. But also can be shortened to but in many sentences.

Question 6

Either... or: where does 'either' go?

Accepted Answer

In formal writing, place either directly before the first of the two matching items: You can either call or write (two verbs). You can call either Asha or Ravi (two names). In speech, looser placement is common and clear: You can either call Asha or Ravi. Tighten it in formal writing. Both... and and neither... nor work the same way.

Question 7

What is parallelism in comparisons?

Accepted Answer

Things compared with than or as should match in kind and shape. Swimming is better than running compares two -ing forms. The weather in Delhi is hotter than Shimla compares weather with a city; write than that in Shimla or than Shimla's. To walk is as healthy as running mixes shapes; use Walking is as healthy as running.

Question 8

Why do bullet points need parallel structure?

Accepted Answer

Readers scan bullets as one set, so each should start the same way. Plan the trip, Book the tickets, Pack the bags all begin with a command verb. Planning the trip, Book tickets, Your bags breaks the pattern and slows the reader. Check that each bullet also fits the lead-in line: You will learn to... must work with every bullet.

Question 9

What is parallelism in literature and speeches?

Accepted Answer

Writers and speakers repeat a structure on purpose to create rhythm, make ideas memorable and press a point. Lincoln's Gettysburg Address ends with government of the people, by the people, for the people. Dickens opens A Tale of Two Cities with It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Listeners hear the pattern and expect the next beat.

Question 10

What is a tricolon?

Accepted Answer

A tricolon is a series of three parallel items, often rising in length or force. Lincoln's of the people, by the people, for the people is a famous example: three prepositional phrases with the same noun. Three feels complete: enough for a pattern, not enough to drag. Julius Caesar's Veni, vidi, vici (I came, I saw, I conquered) is another.

Question 11

What is anaphora?

Accepted Answer

Anaphora is repeating the same word or words at the start of successive clauses or sentences. Ecclesiastes 3 in the King James Bible repeats A time to: A time to be born, and a time to die. Speeches use it to build force, as in several famous wartime speeches repeating we shall fight. Repeating the ending instead is called epistrophe.

Question 12

Is 'He is a doctor and proud of it' wrong?

Accepted Answer

No. It is standard English. A doctor is a noun phrase and proud of it is an adjective phrase, but both do the same job: they describe him after is. Huddleston and Pullum's Cambridge Grammar of the English Language treats such pairs as normal coordination. The rule to match shapes targets items that differ in both form and job.

Question 13

What does a list of things look like?

Accepted Answer

A list of things uses naming words, all the same kind: a bat, a ball and a cap. Each item is a thing you can point to. A bat, a ball and play does not match, because play is a doing word. Fix it by naming a thing: a bat, a ball and a helmet, or by moving play elsewhere.

Question 14

How do I make a list of actions match?

Accepted Answer

Use doing words in the same form. We ran, jumped and laughed: three past-tense verbs. We run, jump and laugh: three present-tense verbs. We ran, jumping and laughed mixes forms, so it bumps. Read the list aloud: if one action sounds different from the others, change it to match.

Question 15

How do I list describing words?

Accepted Answer

Put describing words (adjectives) together with other describing words: My sister is tall, kind and funny. Each word answers What is she like? My sister is tall, kind and plays football mixes two describing words with an action. Fix it with an adjective (tall, kind and sporty) or give the action its own part: tall and kind, and she plays football.