Parallel Structure means having a grammatical balance between related items in a sentence. You will often write a sentence that contains two or more points (examples, details, etc), and these similar ideas must have the same grammatical structure. In other words, nouns should be paired with nouns, verbs with verbs, adjectives with adjectives and so on. Likewise, use phrases with phrases, clauses with clauses, etc. More simply put—don’t change grammatical forms in mid-sentence.
Here are some examples of sentences that are NOT grammatically parallel. What is the problem in each sentence?
- On weekends, my friends and I like to play soccer at the park, watch movies at the mall, and swimming at the beach.
- Employees should be treated fairly and with respect.
- Walking is a great way to exercise because it is convenient, free, and it requires no equipment.
Here are corrected versions of the sentences, written with parallel structure.
- On weekends, my friends and I like to play soccer at the park, watch movies at the mall, and swim at the beach.
- Employees should be treated fairly and respectfully.
- Walking is a great way to exercise because it is convenient, it is free, and it requires no equipment.
In the first sentence, the related items are all verbs, in the second, adverbs, and in the third, clauses. Remember that you have lots of choice when writing a sentence in a parallel form. The most important thing is to have all the same structures.
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