Parallel Structure in a List
Question
The job requires writing reports, attending meetings, and to manage a small team of analysts.
Answer choices
- NO CHANGE
- manage
- to manage well
- managing
D Correct answer: D) managing
When a list begins "writing X, attending Y," the third item must continue the -ing pattern. "Managing" is the only choice that maintains parallel structure.
The other options either introduce a grammatical error or change the intended meaning. The ACT consistently rewards the most concise, grammatically correct option.
Read the sentence with each option substituted in. The version that preserves meaning while obeying the underlying rule is the correct answer; on the ACT, that is almost always the shortest option that still works.
The underlying rule
Items in a list must be in the same grammatical form. The first two items are gerunds ("writing," "attending"), so the third must also be a gerund ("managing").
Why each wrong answer is wrong
- A) NO CHANGE: This option breaks the gerund parallelism established by "writing" and "attending."
- B) manage: This option breaks the gerund parallelism established by "writing" and "attending."
- C) to manage well: This option breaks the gerund parallelism established by "writing" and "attending."
Study tip
Lists on the ACT are parallel almost without exception. If the first two items are -ing words, the third must be too. If the first two are infinitives ("to write, to attend"), the third must be an infinitive too.
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