256 STRUCTURE ‘There are several situations in which you should be particularly careful of parallel struc- ture. Parallel structures are required in the following situations: (1) with coordinate con- junctions, such as and, but, or; (2) with paired conjunctions, such as both....and, either... neither... nor, not only... ut also; and (3) with comparisons. Ski. 24: USE PARALLEL STRUCTURE WITH COORDINATE CONJUNCTIONS The job of the coordinate conjunctions (and, but, or) is to join together equal expressions. In other words, what is on one side of these words must be parallel to what is on the other side, These conjunctions can join nouns, or verbs, or adjectives, or phrases, or subordinate clauses, or main clauses; they just must join together two of the same thing. Here are exam- ples of two nouns joined by a coordinate conjunction: I need to talk to the manager or the assistant manager. She is not a teacher but a lawyer. You can choose from activities such as hiking and kayaking. Here are examples of two verbs joined by a coordinate conjunction: He only eats andsleeps when he takes a vacation. She invites us to her home but never talks with us. You can stay home orgo to the movies with us. Here are examples of two adjectives joined by a coordinate conjunction: My boss is sincere and nice. The exam that he gave was short but difficult. Class can be interesting or boring. Here are examples of two phrases joined by a coordinate conjunction: ‘There are students in the classroom and in front of the building, ‘The papers are on my desk orin the drawer. The checks will be ready not at noon butat 1:00, Here are examples of two clauses joined by a coordinate conjunction: They are not interested in what you say or what you do. Tam here because I have to be and because I want to be. Mr. Brown likes to go home early, but his wife prefers to stay late.The following chart outlines the use of parallel structures with coordinate conj WRITTEN EXPRESSION QUESTIONS (Paper and Computer) 257 PARALLEL STRUCTURE WITH COORDINATE CONJUNCTIONS. ‘and (same structure) but (Game structure) or ‘and (came structure), (same structure), but (same structure) or EXERCISE 24: Each of the following sentences contains words or groups of words that should be parallel. Circle the word that indicates that the sentence should have parallel parts, Underline the parts that should be parallel. Then indicate if the sentences are cor- rect (C) or incorrect (I). aL £2 i ‘Skite 25: She held jobs as a typist, a housekeeper, in a restaurant. She works very hard but usually gets below-average grades. ‘The report you are looking for could be in the \n the desk. ‘The speaker introduced himself, told several interesting anecdotes, and finishing with an emotional plea. ‘You should know when the program starts and how many units you must complete, ‘The term paper he wrote was rather short but very impressive. She suggested taking the plane this evening or that we go by train tomorrow. ‘The dean or the assistant dean will inform you of when and where you should apply for your diploma. ‘There are papers to file, reports to type, and those letters should be answered, |. The manager needed a quick but thorough response. USE PARALLEL STRUCTURE WITH PAIRED CONJUNCTIONS The paired conjunctions both...and, either...0% neither...nor, and not only... but also require parallel structures. I know both where you went and what you did. Either __ ck or Sue has the book. The tics 2ts are neitherin my pocket norin my purse. He is not only an excelient student but alsoan outstanding athlete.258 ‘STRUCTURE ‘The following is not parallel and must be corrected: He wants either to go by train or by plane*. Itis not correct because fo go by train is not parallel to by plane. It can be corrected in several ways. He wants either to go by train or to go by plane. He wants to go either by train or by plane. He wants to go by either train or plane. When you are using these paired conjunctions, be sure that the correct parts are used together. The following are incorrect: 1 want both this book or* that one. Either Sam nor Sue is taking the course. These sentences are incorrect because the wrong parts of the paired conjunctions are used together. In the first example, and should be used with both. In the second example, or should be used with either The following chart outlines the use of parallel structure with paired conjunctions: PARALLEL STRUCTURE WITH PAIRED CONJUNCTIONS both ‘nd either (same structure) or (same structure) neither nor nat only but also EXERCISE 25: Each of the following sentences contains words or groups of words that should be parallel. Circle the word or words that indicate that the sentence should have parallel parts. Underline the parts that should be parallel. Then indicate if the sentences are correct (C) or incorrect (I) According to the syllabus, you can —£_ 2 Itwould be (Goth) noticed (and) appreciated if you could finish the work before you leave. te a paper (or) you can take an exam. 3. She would like neither to see a movie or to go bowling. —— 4. Either the manager or her assistant can help you with your refund, —— 5. She wants not only to take a trip to Europe but she also would like to travel to Asia. —— 6. He could correct neither what you said nor you wrote. —— 7. Both the tailor or the laundress could fix the damage to the dress. —— 8 Henotonly called the pol department but also called the fire department.WRITTEN EXPRESSION QUESTIONS (Paper and Computer) 259 —— 9 You can graduate either at the end of the fall semester or you can graduate at the end of the spring semester. —— 10. The movie was neither amusing nor was i interesting. Skit 26: USE PARALLEL STRUCTURE WITH COMPARISONS When you make a comparison, you point out the similarities or differences between two things, and those similarities or differences must be in parallel form. You can recognize a comparison showing how two things are different from the er... han or the more... than. My school is farther than your school. ‘To be rich is better than to be poor. ‘What is written is more easily understood than what is spoken. A comparison showing how two things are the same might contain as...as or expressions such as the same as or similar to, Their car is as big asa small house. Renting those apartments costs about the same as leasing them, ‘The work that I did is similar to the work that you di The following chart outlines the use of parallel structures with comparisons: PARALLEL STRUCTURE WITH COMPARISONS. ‘more ...than ver... than less ...than os...05 the same ...0s similar ...to (same structure) (same structure) EXERCISE 26: Each of the following sentences contains words or groups of words that should be parallel. Circle the word or words that indicate that the sentence should have parallel parts. Underline the parts that should be parallel. Then indicate if each sentence is correct (C) or incorrect (I). 2 1. Hisresearch for the thesis was hers L. 2 Dining in a restaurant is Gore fun than) to eat at home. —— 3. Iwanta new secretary who is as efficient as the previous one. —— 4. Whatyou do today should be the same as did yesterday. —— 5. This lesson is more difficult than we had before. —— 6. You have less homework than they do.260 STRUCTURE — 10 What you do has more effect than what you say. Music in your country is quite similar to my country. The collection of foreign journals in the university library is more extensive than the high school library. How to buy a used car can be as difficult as buying a new car. EXERCISE (Skills 24-26): Circle the word or words that indicate that the sentence should have parallel parts. Underline the parts that should be parallel. Then indicate if the sen- tences are correct (C) or incorrect (1). After retirement he plans on traveling to exotic locations, dine in the finest restaurants, and playing a lot of golf. She was both surprised by and pleased with the seminar. What came after the break was even more boring than had come before. He would find the missing keys neither under the bed or behind the sofa Depending on the perspective of the viewer, the film was considered laudable, mediocrity, or horrendous. He exercised not only in the morning, but he also exercised every afternoon. Working four days per week is much more relaxing than working five days per week. ‘Sam is always good-natured, generous, and helps you. Either you have to finish the project, or the contract will be canceled. ‘The courses that you are-required to take are more important than the courses that you choose, TOEFL EXERCISE (Skills 24-26): Choose the letter of the word or group of words that, best completes the sentence. 1. Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood is neither 2. Vitamin Cis necessary for the journalistically accurate prevention and of scurvy. (A) apiece of fiction (A) itcures (B) nora fictitious work (B) cures (©) orwritten in a fictitious way (©) cure (D) nor completely fictitious (D) for curingWRITTEN EXPRESSION QUESTIONS (Paper and Computer) 261 3, Ababy’s development is influenced by 4, Because bone loss occurs earlier in both heredity and women than —_, the effects of osteoporosis are more apparent (A)_ by environmental factors Kea PP: (B) environmentally (©) the influence of the environment (A) men do (D) environment (B) in men (C) asmen (D) similar to men Choose the letter of the underlined word or group of words that is not correct. —— 5. Fire extinguishers can contain liquefied gas, dry chemicals, or watery rn cD — & TheU.S. Congress consists of both the Senate aswell a the House of Representatives, a 7. The prison population in this state, now at an all time high, is higher than any state ee ae D —— 8. Awell-composed baroque opera achieves a delicate balance by focusing alternately x — c ‘on the aural, visual, emotional, and philosophy elements. D —— 9. Manufacturers may use food additives for preserving, to color, to flavor, or to fortify x B c foods D —— 10. A bankruptcy may be either voluntary nor involuntary. — x “Ee D ‘TOEFL REVIEW EXERCISE (Skills 1-26): Choose the letter of the word or group of words that best completes the sentence. 1. The growth of hair cyclical 3. In Roman numerals, symbols for process, with phases of activity and numeric values. ae (A) are letters of the alphabet (A) itis (B) letters of the alphabet are (B) isa (C)_ which uses letters of the alphabet (C) whichis (D) inwhich letters of the alphabet are (D) aregular 4. The legal systems of most countries can 2. The fire to have started in the be classified common law or civil furnace under the house. aw. (A) isbelieved (A) aseither (B) thats believed (B) either as (C) they believe (© cither to (D) that they believe (D) weither262 STRUCTURE 5., One difference between mathematics 6. Your criticism of the three short stories and language is that mathematics is, should not be less than 2,000 words, nor precise ——. more than 3,000, (A) anguage is not (A). should it be (B) while language is not (B)_ it should be (C)_ but language not (©) itis (D) while is language (D) should be it Choose the letter of the underlined word or group of words that is not correct. _— 7. 11870, the attorney general was made head of the Department of Justice, given an x enlarged staff, and endow with clear-cut law-enforcement functions. B c D —— 8. The General Sherman Tree, the largest of all the giant sequoias, are rej a e the world’s largest living thing. D —— 9 The skeleton ofa shark is made of cartilage rather than having bone. x B cee —— 10. Atleast one sample of each of the brands contains measurable amounts of aflatoxin, 7 B and there is three which exceed the maximum, C D PROBLEMS WITH COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES __ Sentences with incorrect comparatives and superlatives can appear on the TOEFL test. It is therefore important for you to know how to do the following: (1) form the comparative and superlative correctly; (2) use the comparative and superlative correctly; and (3) use the irregular -er, -erstructure that has been appearing frequently on the TOEFL test. Skit 27: FORM COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES CORRECTLY The problem with some of the comparative and superlative sentences on the TOEFL test is that the comparative or superlative is formed incorrectly. You should therefore understand how to form the comparative and superlative to answer such questions correctly. ‘The comparative is formed with either -er or more and than. In the comparative, -er is used with short adjectives such as tall, and more is used with longer adjectives such as beautiful Bob is taller than Ron. Sally is more beautiful than Sharon.