Parallel Structure with and, but, or, and nor

You need to use parallel structure when you connect two words on both sides of (and, but, or, nor). We’re just talking about words here, not clauses.

1. Steve and his friend are coming to dinner.

N and N

2. Susan raised her hand and snapped her fingers.

Verb + and + Verb

3. These shoes are old but comfortable.

Adj. + but + Adj.

4. He wants to watch TV or listen to some music.

Verb + or + Verb

5. Steve, Joe, and Rita are in class.

Noun + Noun + and + Noun

You can have more than one noun, verb, or adjective on either side of the (but, and, or, nor) as long as they are all in the same grammatical form.

If you are connecting the same grammatical form with the words (and, nor, but, so) you need to have parallel structure on both sides.

The new magazine was colorful and glossy, and it had lots of photographs and advertising.

The new magazine had lots of colorful photographs and (lots of) glossy advertising.

The new magazine was colorful, (was) glossy, and had lots of photographs and advertising.

The new magazine, which was colorful and glossy, had lots of photographs and advertising.

The fireman put out a fire, rescued a cat stuck in a tree, and helped man who had had a heart attack.

The fireman helped a man who had had a heart attack, put out a fire, and rescued a cat stuck in a tree.

Paired Conjunctions: (Both…and; not only. . . but also; either. . .or; neither . . . nor)

1. Both my mother and my sister are here.

When we use (both. . . and) the verb is always plural.

Both this class and ESL 160 are grammar classes.

2. Not only my mother but also my sister is here.

When we use (not only. . .but also; neither. . . nor; either. . . or) the verb is always in the form of the word directly before it.

Neither my sister nor my brother is here.

3. Neither my sister nor my parents are here.

4. Sue saw not only a fox in the woods but also a bear.

5. That book is neither interesting nor accurate.

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   For paired conjunctions, you need to have parallel grammatical form after each of the words in the paired conjunction.

1. Neither Janice nor Erica has any brothers or sisters.

2. We can have either broccoli or cauliflower for dinner.

3. During her speech, Lina spoke both loudly and clearly.

4. Not only Greg but also his twin brother is interested in studying medicine.

5. Both the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox are great baseball teams.

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Coordinating Conjunctions (FANBOYS) to connect independent clauses

What is an independent clause? It is a complete sentence. What is a complete sentence? A complete sentence contains a subject and a verb, at least!

I like oranges. My mother likes apples.

Let’s make a compound sentence instead of writing simple ones. How about that? 

I like orange, but my mother likes apples.

I can connect two independent clauses by using a FANBOYS and a comma.

What is a FANBOYS? F=for, A=and, N=nor, B=but, O=or, Y=yet, S=so

So, if you are connecting two independent clauses, you need to use a FANBOYS and a comma. The comma goes before the FANBOYS.

1. My brother is an accountant, so he can help us with our taxes.

2. A swimmer was attacked by a shark, but he scared it away by poking it in the eye.

3. We enjoyed the movie the excellent story. (No comma needed here because there are not two independent clauses here. They are simply two nouns connected by a conjunction.)