Improving Parallelism Name ______________________
Although parallelism sounds as if it might be a gymnastic feat, it is a skillful writing technique that involves
balanced writing. Sentences written so that their parts are balanced or parallel are easy to read and
understand. Parallelism satisfies our basic love of symmetry. We remember expressions such as of the
people, by the people, for the people and Seeing is believing (not Seeing is to believe).
Lacks Parallelism Achieves Parallelism
Candidates must be reliable, creative, and Candidates must be reliable, creative, and
show enthusiasm. enthusiastic.
The committee is expected to monitor timeliness, The committee is expected to monitor timeli-
quality is to be verified, and provide feedback. ness, verify quality, and provide feedback.
Our advertisements have three objectives: Our advertisements have three objectives:
________________________________________
Improve the following sentences by perfecting opportunities for parallelism.
1. My boss is well-informed, witty, and she is fair.
2. Business messages must be concise, correct, and written with clarity.
3. In preparing to write a business report, you should determine the report purpose, identify the
relevant issues, and then information must be collected.
7. The most important considerations for today’s job candidates are the salary, the environment of
work, and candidates give special consideration to career advancement opportunities.
8. This week’s program is all about money—earning it, investing it, and how you will spend it!
9. A high-powered MBA costs hundreds of dollars an hour. Our program covers the same sage advice:
a. Starting a business
10. Not only were the training sessions stimulating, but also they were a challenge.
11. The proposal will elaborate on (a) dealing with the public, (b) how to obtain corporate
contributions, and (c) the timing of a marketing campaign.
15.[Convert to a vertical list.] To make a YouTube video you should first obtain a video recording
device such as a cell phone, webcam, or camcorder. The most popular YouTube videos are video
Key – Improving Parallelism
The following are possible revisions. Other good revisions may also be possible.
1. My boss is well-informed, witty, and fair.
4. Good listeners do the following:
a. Stop talking.
7. The most important considerations for today’s job candidates are salary, work environment, and
career advancement opportunities.
8. This week’s program is all about money—earning it, investing it, and spending it.
9. A high-powered MBA costs hundreds of dollars an hour. Our program covers the same sage
advice:
10. Not only were the training sessions stimulating, but also they were challenging.
11. The proposal will elaborate on (a) dealing with the public, (b) obtaining corporate contributions,
and (c) timing a marketing campaign.
13. Classes will be available in strength training, flexibility, stress reduction, and
aerobic/cardiovascular conditioning.
14. We have hired a consultant to help managers stay on track with the new organizational plan,
develop team resources, and monitor customer feedback.
15. To make a YouTube video, you should do the following:
a. Obtain a video recording device such as a cell phone, webcam, or camcorder.