Parallel structure — Sentence Correction Aptitude Question
Parallel structure: Choose the correct sentence: Answer and worked solution on CodeKairo.
- Topic: Sentence Correction
- Section: Verbal Ability
- Difficulty: Easy
- Time target: 40 seconds
Question
Choose the correct sentence:
Options
- She likes to read, swimming and to cycle.
- She likes read, swim and cycle.
- She likes reading, to swim and cycling.
- She likes reading, swimming and cycling.
Show the answer and the worked solution
Correct answer: D. She likes reading, swimming and cycling.
Worked solution
- Items joined by and must share a form.
- reading, swimming and cycling are all gerunds. 'To read, to swim and to cycle' would be equally correct.
Answer: She likes reading, swimming and cycling.
The idea
Read the list aloud with the verb repeated before each item. Any item that does not fit the pattern breaks the parallelism.
Shortcut. Pick the option whose three items share one form: only the -ing trio does. 'Likes read, swim and cycle' fails for another reason — likes cannot take a bare verb.
Common trap. "She likes reading, to swim and cycling." opens and closes with -ing forms, so it sounds parallel at a glance; the infinitive in the middle breaks the pattern.