USE PARALLEL STRUCTURE A sentence is parallel if its coordinate elements follow the same grammatical form: for example, all the clauses are either passive or active, all the verbs are either infinitives or participles, and so on. Parallel structure creates a recognizable pattern, making a sentence easier for the reader to follow. Nonparallel structure creates no such pattern, distracting and possibly confusing readers. In the following examples of nonparallel constructions, the verbs are not in the same form (verbs are italicized). NONPARALLEL PARALLEL NONPARALLEL PARALLEL Our present system is costing us profits and reduces our productivity. Our present system is costing us profits and reducing our productivity. The compositor should follow the printed directions; do not change the originator's work. The compositor should follow the printed directions and should not change the originator's work. When using parallel constructions, make sure that parallel items in a series do not overlap, causing confusion or even changing the meaning of the sentence: CONFUSING The speakers will include partners of law firms, businesspeople, and civic leaders. CLEAR CONFUSING CLEAR Partners of appears to apply to businesspeople and civic leaders, as well as to law firms. That is, partners of carries over to the other items in the series. The following revision solves the problem by rearranging the items so that partners can apply only to law firms. The speakers will include businesspeople, civic leaders, and partners of law firms. We need to buy more lumber, hardware, tools, and hire the subcontractors. The writer has linked two ideas inappropriately. The first idea is that we need to buy three things: lumber, hardware, and tools. The second is that we need to hire the subcontractors. Hiring is not in the same category as the items to be bought. In other words, the writer has structured and punctuated the sentence as if it contained a four- item series, when in fact it should contain a three-item series followed by a second verb phrase. We need to buy more lumber, hardware, and tools, and we need to hire the oub 14. Referring to the advice on pp. 230-31, revise the following sentences to eliminate nonparallelism. a. The next two sections of the manual discuss how to analyze the data, the conclusions that can be drawn from your analysis, and how to decide what further steps are needed before establishing a journal list. b. In the box, we should include a copy of the documentation, the cables, and the docking station