Parallel Structure

Parallelism--repeating grammatical forms to underscore similar ideas--is a powerful tool for persuasion. By grammatically balancing words, phrases, and clauses, a writer enables readers to navigate an essay with ease. Parallel structures create pleasing rhythms and make sentences and paragraphs flow.

 Below are four common situations which call for parallel structures. In each example the parallel elements are highlighted.

Use parallel structures when organizing items in a series or a list: nouns go with nouns, verbs with verbs, and adverbial phrases with adverbial phrases.

  1. The suicidal roach skulked out of the toaster, scuttled across the counter, and skirted the sink before hurling itself into the disposal. [verbs]
  2. Angry ants, munching marshmallows, crumbling coffeecake, and sipping syrup, headed off across the Great Divide. [participial phrases]
  3. The concubine's entourage included a dimpled dwarf, a joking giant, and a humoungous hamster. [noun phrases]
  4. The duties of the Hospitality Committee are to greet the gynocologists, serve the Sangria, pass the popsicles, and woo the wallflowers.


Use parallel structure with pairs of words, ideas, or clauses:

  1. Granny's method was tried and true.
  2. Man proposes. God disposes.
  3. Coffee corrupts. Absolute coffee corrupts absolutely.

    4.  
Use parallel structures with coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so): use the same grammatical form on both sides of the coordinating conjunction.
  1. She possessed all of the adder's charm yet none of the adder's insight.
  2. Consult a psychiatrist if your paranoia persists or if your desire disappears.


Use parallel structures with correlative conjunctions (either / or; both / and; not only / but also; just as / so; whether / or:

  1. She wanted not only to wring his neck but also to tickle his fancy.
  2. He defeated the dragon not by his doughty arm but by his awesome Uzi.
  3. As the wings of wintering starlings bear them on in their great wheeling flights, just so the blast wherries these evil souls through time foregone. (Dante, The Inferno)
  4. The road to hell is paved neither with good intentions nor with cobblestones.**
** Be sure to repeat any article (the, an, a), preposition (by, in, about), or other key words to ensure clear meaning.

 another example: It may be easier to try writing your own essay than to modify one written by someone else. It is certainly more honest.

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