Scientists have recently discovered what could be the largest and oldest living organism on Earth, a giant

fungus that is an interwoven filigree of mushrooms and root-like tentacles spawned by a single fertilized
spore some 10,000 years ago and extending for more than 30 acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.

extending

extends

extended

it extended
5

is extending

This is Q#42 from OG 12. It has been removed from OG 13. So if you want to solve this question first, go
ahead. But my belief is that most of you have already solved this question before and will not forget the
confusion it had created when you encountered it for the first time. This question can safely be said to
be one the most confusing and extensively discussed official questions. Reason: The seemingly “non-
parallel” grammatical structure of the entities. We classify the list as Imperfect List.

The OA for this one is choice A. Did you ask, “Hey, 'spawned' and 'extending' are parallel! They don’t
even look grammatically similar.”

This reminds me of a similar question that we are always asked. “Can an active voice be parallel to
passive voice?” The answer to all these questions is Yes. “Spawned” is parallel to “extending” and active
and passive voices can also be parallel, another instance of Imperfect List.

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Section 2 - A Little Tweak

Logic and grammar run parallel in parallelism. Entities in a list must be Logically as well as Grammatically
parallel. Many times, it becomes difficult to maintain an identical grammatical structure to convey the
logical intended meaning. In these scenarios, the grammatical structures are not compromised but
tweaked a bit to maintain logic in the sentence. Overall, logic trumps grammar. After all, grammar is a
tool to express logic!! (or shall I say intended meaning).

This tweak results in Imperfect List where we see apparently “non-parallel” grammatical entities such as
“spawned” and “extending”, active and passive voice entities, noun forms and “ing” noun forms
(gerunds), etc. Here are some structures of possible imperfect lists:

1
1

Noun forms and “ing” noun forms (gerunds).

Active and passive voice entities

Verb-ed and Verb-ing modifiers

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Section 3 - Simple imperfect List

Let’s take a few simple examples before analyzing the confusing OG problems. Look at these five
example sentences below and mark the sentences that parallel.

(You will need a pen and paper for this exercise).

The new lamp decorated with pink flowers and resembling a star brought a large smile on the child’s
face.

The new lamp decorated with pink flowers and resembled a star brought a large smile on the child’s face.

The new lamp decorating with pink flowers and resembling a star brought a large smile on the child’s
face.

The new lamp decorated with pink flowers and that resembles a star brought a large smile on the child’s
face.

The new lamp that is decorated with pink flowers and that resembles a star brought a large smile on the
child’s face.

Section 4 - Explanation
The new lamp decorated with pink flowers and resembling a star brought a large smile on the child’s
face.

This sentence is about a new lamp that made a child smile. Two characteristics of this lamp are
mentioned here. It is

a. is decorated with pink flower and

b. resembles a star

Notice that 'decorated' is the verb-ed modifier presenting one quality of the lamp. And 'resembling' is a
verb-ing modifier presenting another quality of the lamp. So, both these words are modifiers that
perform the same function. Hence, 'decorated' and 'resembling' are parallel. Yes, one is a Verb-ed
Modifier and the other is Verb-ing Modifier. But they both are 'Modifiers' and modify the same entity.
This is the reason why these two are parallel.

The new lamp decorated with pink flowers and resembled a star brought a large smile on the child’s face.

In this sentence, 'decorated' and 'resembled' are structurally identical but not parallel. 'Decorated' is a
verb-ed modifier but 'resembled' is a simple past tense verb. They do not perform the same function.
Hence, they are not parallel.

Also, notice that now 'The new lamp' has two verbs - resembled and brought - that are not connected
properly. So this sentence is INCORRECT.

3
3

The new lamp decorating with pink flowers and resembling a star brought a large smile on the child’s
face.

Here too, 'decorating' and 'resembling' are structurally identical but not parallel. The phrase 'decorating
with flowers' seems to suggest that the lamp was doing the action of decorating.

Moreover, 'decorating' by itself cannot be a continuous verb because it is not preceded by any helping
verb (is/am/are/was/were). So, even if they look identical, these two entities are not parallel.

The new lamp decorated with pink flowers and that resembles a star brought a large smile on the child’s
face.

Here, 'decorated' is a verb-ed modifier and 'that resembles' is also a modifier. They perform the same
function. But there grammatical structure is not parallel. 'Decorated' is a verb-ed modifier and 'that
resembles' is a clause. A word/phrase CANNOT be parallel to a clause.

In this case, even if the list makes logical sense, grammar does not approve it as parallel because the
clause can be written in the form to make it parallel to 'decorated'. 'that resembles' can be written as
'resembling' and this will make the list parallel.

The new lamp that is decorated with pink flowers and that resembles a star brought a large smile on the
child’s face.

This sentence rectifies the error of sentence 4. and turns single-word verb-ed modifier 'decorated' into
'that is decorated', a 'that clause'. Now the entities in the list are absolutely parallel.

Did you just say, “But these two entities are written in two different voices.” I’m glad you noticed.

An active voice entity CAN very well be parallel to a passive voice as long as the subject of the verbs is
same. Notice in both 'that clause', 'that' stands for 'the new lamp'. So the sentence says that:

1. The new lamp is decorated with pink flowers. – Passive Voice. Note the active voice will be 'Rosy
decorated the lamp with pink flowers'.

2. The new lamp resembles a star. – Active Voice

Section 5 - Applying the logic to OG12 #42

So now we can easily explain why “spawned” and “extending” are parallel.

Scientists have recently discovered what could be the largest and oldest living organism on Earth, a giant
fungus that is an interwoven filigree of mushrooms and rootlike tentacles spawned by a single fertilized
spore some 10,000 years ago and extending for more than 30 acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.

Let’s first understand the meaning of this sentence. Scientists have discovered a giant fungus that is a
complex filigree. Two characteristics of this giant fungus are mentioned, and these two characteristics
are the reason why scientists think this giant fungus can be the oldest and largest living organism on
Earth.

1
1

The filigree = the fungus is spawned by a single fertilized spore some 10,000 years ago.

The filigree = the fungus extends for more than 30 acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.

“spawned” is a verb-ed modifier that modifies the fungus. “extending” is a verb-ing modifier that
modifies the same entity. They perform the same function. They both are modifiers, modify the same
entity, and both are phrases. That is why these two are parallel. This sentence is correct as is.

Choices B, C, and E are verb entities that CANNOT be parallel to verb-ed modifiers. Choice D is a clause
that again grammatically is not parallel to a single word modifier.

Section 6 - Takeaways

Structurally identical entities are not always parallel.

Logic governs the structure of the entities in the list.

3
Verb-ed and Verb-ing modifiers can be parallel.

Active and Passive Voice verbs can be parallel if the verbs have the same subject.

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Section 7 - Practice Exercises

Solve these two official problems and apply the principles that you have learned in this article.

Dressed as a man and using the name Robert Shurtleff, Deborah Sampson, the first woman to draw a
soldier’s pension, joined the Continental Army in 1782 at the age of 22, was injured three times, and was
discharged in 1783 because she had become too ill to serve.

A. 22, was injured three times and was discharged in 1783 because she had become

B. 22, was injured three times while being discharged in 1783 because she had become

C. 22, and was injured three times and discharged in 1783, being

D. 22, injured three times and was discharged in 1783 because she was
E. 22, having been injured three times and discharged in 1783, being

First discovered more than 30 years ago, Lina’s sunbird, a four-and-a-half-inch animal found in the
Philippines and that resembles a hummingbird, has shimmering metallic colors on its head; a brilliant
orange patch, bordered with red tufts, in the center of its breast; and a red eye.

A. found in the Philippines and that resembles

B. found in the Philippines and that, resembling

C. found in the Philippines and resembling

D. that is found in the Philippines and it resembles

E. that is found in the Philippines, resembling

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Before we start discussing which of the two - grammar or logic - is more important in parallelism, let’s
look at the following sentences.

1
1

John prepared for impending currency crisis, storing enough food and water for future and posting his
pictures online.

John prepared for impending currency crisis, storing enough food and water for future and posted his
pictures online.

Which choice do you think is correct – 1 or 2. Which of them is grammatically parallel? Both 1 and 2 look
to be grammatically parallel, however only 2 makes logical sense.

How do we say that?

When you look at the meaning of the sentence, you will notice that structurally 'storing enough food and
water' and 'posting his pictures online' represent 'how' John prepared for the impending currency crisis.
However, logically 'posting his pictures online' has nothing to do with how John prepared for the
impending currency crisis. On the other hand, choice B is structurally different where the sentence is so
written such that 'posted his pictures online' is a separate activity from preparing from 'preparing for
impending currency crisis', thus making the entire sentence logical.

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Section 2 - Parallelism - Go by Logic

Every time we get to a problem pertaining to parallelism, instinctively we check the grammatical
structure of the entities to make the list parallel. Now, the entities must have same grammatical
structure to make the list parallel, alright. What we must keep in mind is that the grammatically parallel
entities in the list must convey the LOGICAL INTENDED meaning of the sentence. If the grammatically
parallel entities make the sentence illogical, then the list is not considered parallel.
How to understand the Logic

So, now we know that when we solve a parallelism problem, we must first understand the logical
meaning of the sentence, and accordingly make the entities grammatically parallel to convey that
meaning. A grammatically correct parallel list will still be incorrect if it does not convey logical meaning.

There are two essential things that can lead us to the logical meaning of a sentence:

Understand the context of the sentence:

It is very important to spend some time with the original sentence, analyzing it to decipher the logical
intended meaning. The original sentence always sets the context for the logical meaning. Even if any
entity in the list conveys illogical meaning, that is a clear hint that we must correct that entity first for
logical parallelism and then make it grammatically parallel with other logical entities in the list.

Pay close attention to sentence structure:

Knowledge of sentence structure helps in determining the correct role of the entities in the list so that
they can convey the logical sense. This knowledge also helps in choosing the appropriate grammatical
structure of the entities to keep them grammatically parallel.
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Section 3 - Guided Practice

We have changed a few words in some of the official questions and the answer choices so that our
discussion on the topic later in the article is more pertinent to parallelism without the fear of getting
digressed to other conceptual errors. Try these questions before viewing the explanations.

Example 1

John prepared for Hurricane Sandy in advance, storing enough food and water, purchased flashlights and
candles for possible power outages, and charging his cellphone to reach out to authorities in case of
emergency.

storing enough food and water, purchased flashlights and candles for possible power outages, and
charging

storing enough food and water, purchased flashlights and candles for possible power outages, had
charged
3

storing enough food and water, purchasing flashlights and candles for possible power outages, and
charging

stored enough food and water, purchased flashlights and candles for possible power outages, and
charged

stored enough food and water, and purchased flashlights and candles for possible power outages, being
charged

Meaning Analysis

It is very essential to understand the meaning of the sentence. The sentence says that John prepared
himself for Hurricane Sandy. Following is the list of things he did for his preparation:

1
he stored enough food and water,

he purchased flashlights and candles to handle power crisis, and

he charged his cellphone for emergency use.

Error Analysis (Related only to Parallelism)

There is a list of things that John did to prepare himself for Hurricane Sandy. The verb-ing modifier
'storing…' correctly modifies the preceding clause, giving additional information as to what all John did in
his preparation. Since there is a list of things John did, the entities in this list must be parallel. However,
'purchased…' is not parallel to 'storing…' and 'charging…'.It is very essential to understand the meaning
of the sentence.

POE

Since we are talking about the logical and grammatical parallelism in this article, let us take a look at
those answer choices that stand incorrect despite being grammatically parallel. Here, we will also
analyze the correct answer choice to reinforce the importance of logic in parallelism.
Grammatically Correct but Logically Incorrect Choice D:

stored enough food and water, purchased flashlights and candles for possible power outages, and
charged

This choice is grammatically sound because all the entities in this choice are grammatically parallel.
Notice that 'stored…', 'purchased…', and 'charged…' are now parallel to 'prepared' as well. However,
despite being grammatically parallel, this choice is incorrect because the meaning conveyed by this
choice is ILLOGICAL. Per this choice, the entities in the list do no present information as to HOW John
prepared for Sandy. These entities are now independent entities and the choice now conveys that John
performed all these four actions independent of each other. This is not the intended meaning of the
sentence.

Correct Choice C:

storing enough food and water, purchasing flashlights and candles for possible power outages, and
charging

This choice is CORRECT because it is not only grammatically parallel but also logically parallel. The three
verb-ing modifiers in the correctly modify the preceding clause, presenting information about the
modified clause.

Example 2 - from GMAT Prep

Among lower paid workers union members are less likely than non-union members to be enrolled in
lower end insurance plans imposing stricter limits on medical services and requiring doctors to see more
patients and spend less time with each.
1

imposing stricter limits on medical services and requiring doctors to see more patients, and spend

imposing stricter limits on medical services, requiring doctors to see more patients, and spending

that impose stricter limits on medical services, require doctors to see more patients, and spend

that impose stricter limits on medical services and require doctors to see more patients, spending

that impose stricter limits on medical services, requiring doctors to see more patients and spending
Meaning Analysis

Lower end insurance plans do two things:

impose strict limits on medical services, and

require doctors to see more patients.

As a result of seeing more patients, the doctors will spend less time with each patient.

Error Analysis (Related only to Parallelism)

Verb-ing modifiers 'imposing…' and 'requiring…' correctly modifies 'low end insurance plans'. They are
grammatically parallel too. However, 'and spend time…' is not correctly written. This entity is not the part
of the list but the result of the last entity in the list. Hence, it must be written correctly.

POE
Since we are talking about the logical and grammatical parallelism in this article, let us discuss only those
answer choices that pertain to the topic of this article.

Grammatically Correct but Logically Incorrect Choice B:

imposing stricter limits on medical services, requiring doctors to see more patients, and spending

Per this grammatically correct choice, the 'low end insurance policies' do three things. This certainly does
not make sense because the policies do not spend less time with each (patient).

Grammatically Correct but Logically Incorrect Choice C:

that impose stricter limits on medical services, require doctors to see more patients, and spend

This choice is similar to choice B: It conveys the same illogical meaning by making all the three entities
grammatically parallel to each other.

Grammatically Correct but Logically Incorrect Choice E:

that impose stricter limits on medical services, requiring doctors to see more patients and spending

This choice is also grammatically correct. The verb-ing modifiers 'requiring…' and 'spending…' preceded
by comma modifies the preceding clause. This modification conveys absolutely illogical meaning. It now
says that the result of imposing stricter limits is that the doctors will have to see more patients and the
policies will spend less time with each patient.

Correct Choice D:

that impose stricter limits on medical services and require doctors to see more patients, spending

This choice corrects the list by making 'impose…' and 'require…' grammatically parallel to each other.
Verb-ing modifier 'spending' preceded by comma correctly presents the result of the preceding action,
correctly conveying the result of doctors seeing more patients

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Section 4 - Take Aways