Question

which sentence best uses parallel structure?
○ my sisters are all artistic—patricia writes, mary sculpts, and elizabeth composes.
○ my sisters are all artistic—patricia writes poetry, mary sculpts, and elizabeth composes music.
○ my sisters are all artistic—patricia is a poet, mary makes sculptures, and elizabeth composes music.
○ my sisters are all artistic—patricia creates poems, mary creates sculptures, and elizabeth is a composer.

Explanation:

To determine parallel structure, we check if the verb forms (or sentence structures) are consistent. In the first option: "Patricia writes, Mary sculpts, and Elizabeth composes" – all use present - tense, simple - verb (subject + verb) structure. The second option has "writes poetry" (verb + object) vs "sculpts" (verb) vs "composes music" (verb + object), inconsistent. The third option has "is a poet" (subject + linking verb + noun) vs "makes sculptures" (verb + object) vs "composes music" (verb + object), inconsistent. The fourth option has "creates poems" (verb + object), "creates sculptures" (verb + object), and "is a composer" (subject + linking verb + noun), inconsistent. So the first option has consistent parallel structure.

Answer:

My sisters are all artistic—Patricia writes, Mary sculpts, and Elizabeth composes