Question

read the paragraph.
(1) outside, the snow hit the ground with a faint tapping. inside, the heater came on with a distant roar.
(2) outside, the wind howled through the big oak; a log snapped in the fireplace. (3) outside, footsteps crunchéd hurriedly past the window; inside, the cat stretched and purred. (4) outside, an owl hooted softly; inside, a page turned.
what revision should be made to maintain parallel structure?
○ sentence 1 should be revised to read, \outside the snow fell; inside the heater came on with a distant roar.\
○ sentence 2 should be revised to read, \outside, the wind howled through the big oak; inside, a log snapped in the fireplace.\
○ sentence 3 should be revised to read, \outside, footsteps walked hurriedly past the window; inside, the cat stretched and purred.\
○ sentence 4 should be revised to read, \in the night, an owl hooted; in the room, a page turned.\

Explanation:

Parallel structure here requires each sentence to follow the consistent pattern: "Outside, [external action]; inside, [internal action]."

• Sentence 1 breaks this by using "inside, the heater came on..." after a period instead of a semicolon, and the phrasing doesn't match the paired structure.
• Sentence 2 already follows the correct parallel format.
• Sentence 3 has incorrect logic: footsteps are an external action, so they belong with "Outside," not "inside."
• Sentence 4's proposed revision abandons the clear "Outside/inside" parallel framing that the rest of the paragraph uses.

Only the revision for Sentence 1 fixes the structure to match the consistent "Outside, [action]; inside, [action]" pattern of the other sentences.

Answer:

Sentence 1 should be revised to read, "Outside the snow fell; inside the heater came on with a distant roar."