Parallelism

General Strategies for Parallel Structure SAT Writing Questions

#1: Any List Within A Sentence Indicates a Possible Error in Parallel Structure If you see the x, y, and z list construction, make sure that the items in the list have the same grammatical form. #2: Phrases Connected by Conjunctions May Indicate an Error in Parallel Structure The phrase parallel structure questions tend to be more difficult and will most likely appear near the end of the sentence improvement and identify the error subsections. If you see multiple items connected by conjunctions at the end of these subsections, look for errors in parallel structure. #3: Break Down the Construction of Phrases Separated by Conjunctions and Items in a List Identify the parts of speech of words within a list. Also, identify the parts of speech of words within phrases that precede and succeed a conjunction. Make sure the construction of the phrases and list items match as closely as possible.

Type #1: Parallel Lists

Incorrect: Sonia is known for her independence, her honesty, and being intelligent. Correct: Sonia is known for her independence, her honesty, and being intelligent.

examples of #2

Now that we know the rule and the definition of a conjunction, we can check out how this rule should be applied. Here is a sentence with a parallel structure error: The SAT Writing section challenges students and frustration is found in them. So, the two items are connected by the conjunction "and". Let's break down each item by its parts of speech. The first item, "challenges students" is VERB + NOUN . The second item that follows the conjunction is "frustration is found in them". That phrase's construction is NOUN + VERB + ADJECTIVE + PREPOSITION + PRONOUN. Even if you struggle identifying the parts of speech of certain words, you should be able to immediately recognize that the phrases are not consistent and the sentence has a parallel structure error. So, how do we correct the sentence? We change the wording in the phrase following "and" to match the VERB + NOUN construction of the first phrase. This is the corrected version of the sentence: The SAT Writing section challenges students and frustrates them. Do you see that the phrases appear more consistent and the sentence reads better after we fix the error? Also, note that it's fine to use a pronoun in the place of a noun as long as the pronoun has a clear antecedent (coming soon). Let's go through the same process with another example: Rand Paul supports the repeal of the Affordable Care Act as well as that the Department of Education should be eliminated. The two items in the sentence are the two things that Rand Paul supports. Both items are connected by the conjunction "as well as". Let's break down the parts of speech of the words in those things. Phrase #1 Is "the repeal of the Affordable Care Act". Repeal= NOUN + of= PREPOSITION + Affordable Care Act= NOUN. Phrase #1's construction is NOUN + PREPOSITION + NOUN. The basic construction of phrase #2 is PRONOUN (that) + NOUN (Department of Education) + VERB (should be eliminated). Its construction is PRONOUN + NOUN + VERB. We want the construction of phrase #2 to match the construction of phrase #1. Here is the corrected version of the sentence: Rand Paul supports the repeal of the Affordable Care Act as well as the elimination of the Department of Education. Much better, right???? So, phrase #2 should now match the NOUN + PREPOSITION + NOUN construction of phrase #1. Let's see if it does. Elimination=NOUN, of=PREPOSITION, Department of Education=NOUN. Boom!!

Parallelism

Parallel structure means using the same pattern of words for two or more words or ideas in a sentence. Using parallel structure shows that the words/ideas have the same level of importance and makes the sentence easier to understand. The basic parallel structure rule is that the things in a list should be in the same grammatical form. If you are listing three things, the construction of that list should be noun, noun, noun, or verb, verb, verb, or gerund, gerund, gerund, etc. Any inconsistency within the list is an error in parallel structure. Here is an example of a sentence with an error in parallel structure: Incorrect: Egya likes laughing, singing, and to write. Correct: Egya likes laughing, singing, and writing.

Type #2: Parallel Phrases

Parallel structure phrase questions are slightly more complicated than list questions, but they follow the same principle. The parallel structure rule regarding phrases is that the construction of a phrase on one side of a conjunction must match the construction of the phrase on the other side of the conjunction as closely as possible. Definition of a Conjunction Conjunctions are words that connect phrases or clauses. Examples of common conjunctions include and, or, but, and so. Some of you may be familiar with the acronym FANBOYS. It stands for For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So. Those are all conjunctions. Additionally, there are correlative conjunctions, also known as word pairs. Literally, these words come in pairs. The items correlative conjunctions compare follow each word of the word pair. Examples of word pairs include either...or, not only...but also, as...as, and both...and.

Strategy was #2

Strategy If you see a conjunction connecting/comparing two items, identify the items. Then, break down the words in each item by their parts of speech and determine the phrase's construction. Make sure that the phrases are parallel. The construction of the phrases should match as closely as possible. Also, a preposition used on one side of a conjunction or word pair must appear on the other side. Look at this example with a parallel structure error. The dancer was praised not only for her strength but also in her agility. The dancer was praised for two things. Those things are connected by the word pair "not only...but also". The two things, which are the phrases before and after "but also", should be parallel in construction. The prepositions should match for the sentences to be parallel. This is the corrected version of the sentence: The dancer was praised not only for her strength but also for her agility.

Strategy for type #1

To correctly answer parallel structure list questions, first identify that there is a list of items. Usually the list will look like this: x, y, and z. Make sure that the commas are separating items in a list and are not just separating clauses. Once you have identified the list, ensure that the items in the list are as consistent with the other items in the list as possible. How do we do that? Break down each item in the list by identifying the parts of speech of the words and make sure that all the items match. We want each item to be in the same grammatical form. After breaking down the list items, there should be no inconsistencies. Once we fixed our previous example sentence, the items in the list included "independence" (noun), "honesty" (noun), and "intelligence" (noun). Let's move on to the second type of parallel structure question.