Exercise A: Faulty Parallelism

 

Directions: For each "non-parallel" sentence, replace the underlined portion with the choice that creates a parallel structure. Click on the letter that precedes the best choice. If the sentence is fine, click "no change."

1 Learning a new language as an adult is more difficult than to learn one as a child.
learning
to learning
no change
2 Every morning, I run two miles, walk one mile, and half a mile on the bike.
half a mile.
bike half a mile.
no change
3 There are two ways to get a promotion: working hard or make friends in high places.
work hard
to working hard
no change
4 Many college students have the same goals: playing hard, doing well in classes, and a job after graduation.
after graduation, a job.
finding a job after graduation.
no change
5 The man walked down the street, stopped at a shop window, and was fixing his tie.
fixed his tie.
to fix his tie.
no change
6 The chef chopped the parsley, peeled the tomatoes and cut the zucchini into cubes.
was cutting the zucchini into cubes
cubed the zucchini
no change
7 People often try to avoid eye contact with others, whether riding on a bus, strolling through a shopping mall, or when they are in line at a supermarket.
waiting in line at a supermarket
in a supermarket line
no change
8 When trying to impress a prospective employer, people should pay attention to their clothing, their posture, and that they don’t use too much slang.
if they use too much slang
their speech
no change
9 Critics argue that the television show trivializes violence, glamorizes drug use and premarital sex.
encourages premarital sex
was encouraging premarital sex
no change
10 The bedroom was filled with old newspapers and radios that don’t work.
radios that are broken
broken radios
no change