Parallel Structure

1) What is Parallel Structure?

Definition, the golden rule, and basic examples.

Parallel structure (also known as parallelism) is the repetition of a chosen grammatical form within a sentence. By making each compared item or idea follow the same grammatical pattern, you create a parallel construction that is easy to read and understand.

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The Golden Rule

You must balance nouns with nouns, verbs with verbs, gerunds with gerunds, and phrases with phrases.

Parallel (Correct)

She likes baking, running, and reading.
The teacher is smart, patient, and kind.

Not Parallel (Wrong)

She likes baking, to run, and reading. (mixed verb forms)
The teacher is smart, patient, and a kind person. (mixed adjective and noun phrase)

2) Coordinating Conjunctions

Using FANBOYS (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).

When you connect two or more items using a coordinating conjunction (most commonly and or or), the items must be grammatically parallel.

Level	Correct (Parallel)	Incorrect (Faulty)
Words	Please bring a pen, pencil, and notebook.	Please bring a pen, pencil, and something to write on.
Phrases	We searched in the car, under the bed, and behind the sofa.	We searched in the car, under the bed, and checked the sofa.
Clauses	He said that he was sorry and that he would fix it.	He said that he was sorry and he promises to fix it.

3) Correlative Conjunctions

Pairs like: Either/or, neither/nor, not only/but also.

Correlative conjunctions come in pairs. The grammatical structure that follows the first half of the pair must be identical to the structure that follows the second half.

Conjunction Pair	Example of Parallel Structure
Either / Or	You can either stay here or come with us. (Verb phrase balances verb phrase)
Neither / Nor	The movie was neither accurate nor entertaining. (Adjective balances adjective)
Not only / But also	She is not only a brilliant scientist but also an excellent writer. (Noun phrase balances noun phrase)
Both / And	We need both more time and better equipment. (Noun phrase balances noun phrase)

Common Error

Watch out for misplaced halves: “He not only wants money but also fame” is incorrect. It should be: “He wants not only money but also fame.”

4) Parallelism in Comparisons

Balancing items joined by “than” or “as”.

When you are comparing two things, the two things being compared must be built using the same grammatical structure.

Parallel Structure

Riding a bike is faster than walking.
To learn is to grow.
I would rather pay for my ticket than wait in line.

Faulty Parallelism

Riding a bike is faster than to walk.
To learn is growing.
I would rather pay for my ticket than waiting in line.

5) Bulleted Lists (Resumes & Documents)

Keeping list items consistent.

When creating a list, especially on a resume or in a professional document, start every bullet point with the same part of speech (usually an active verb).

Consistent Resumé Bullet Points

Duties included:

Managed a team of five employees.
Designed the new company logo.
Organized weekly scheduling.

Inconsistent Resumé Bullet Points

Duties included:

Managed a team of five employees.
Designing the new company logo.
I was responsible for weekly scheduling.

6) Mixing Voice (Active vs. Passive)

Keeping verbs in the same voice.

Another common way parallelism is broken is by mixing active voice and passive voice in the same sentence or clause sequence.

Type	Example	Problem/Fix
Mixed Voice (Incorrect)	The committee approved the budget, and the schedule was finalized by them.	Shifts from active (“approved”) to passive (“was finalized”).
Parallel Voice (Correct)	The committee approved the budget and finalized the schedule.	Both verbs are now active, sharing the same subject.