Creating Parallelism

Parallelism 

What is parallelism? 

When editing, we can use parallelism to make our ideas easier for readers to understand. Parallelism occurs when two or more words, phrases, or clauses in a sentence have the same grammatical structure. Writing with parallelism makes your sentences sound more professional and effective. 

When using parallelism, make sure all of your verbs are conjugated in the same way and that gerunds, or verbs that act as nouns, appear in the same form. 

Examples

Before editing: On the weekend, I like watching TV, eating pizza, and to sleep in late. 

After editing: On the weekend, I like watching TV, eating pizza, and sleeping in late. 

Do you see how the second sentence has a more consistent verb form compared to the first? 

To check whether your sentence with multiple phrases/clauses is in parallel structure, you can try writing the longer sentence as three separate sentences to see if they follow the same pattern. For example, in the sentences below, all follow the same pattern:

On the weekend, I like watching TV. 

On the weekend, I like eating pizza 

On the weekend, I like sleeping in late. 

In the sentences below, the ideas are not expressed in a parallel form.

On the weekend, I like to sleep in late. 

On the weekend, I like eating pizza.

I watch TV on the weekends.

Parallelism in Lists 

When using bulleted or numbered lists, as well as formal outlines, make sure the items are parallel. 

Before editing: I have to do the following things this week: 

• Studying for my math test 

• Schedule a haircut 

• Going to the grocery store 

• Walk the dog 

After editing: I have to do the following things this week: 

• Study for my math test 

• Schedule a haircut 

• Go to the grocery store 

• Walk the dog