Mnemonic for parallel

Question

Is there a nice mnemonic for the spelling of the word

parallel

I just can't remember how many "l" there are and where.

@Josh61, two "ll" at the end would be parallel, too. And two pairs of "l" would be even more paralleler. But thanks, at least that helps remember that there is at least one pair of "l". And thanks for the link! — Emanuel, Nov 20 '14 at 10:55
The best way to remember, is the old way. Hand write the word fifty times on a piece of paper, guaranteed. You'll probably want to stop after the tenth but keep going! :) — Mari-Lou A, Nov 20 '14 at 12:08
I go by "Do not put the double l where I think it should be". — painfulenglish, Nov 20 '14 at 14:57
@painfulenglish... oddly enough that is actually very helpful :) — Emanuel, Nov 21 '14 at 11:57

Araucaria - Him · Answer 1 · 2014-11-20T15:36:26.760

4

Parallel mnemonic:

Par all elephants

You don't need to remember the par bit because it's in the original word. All elephants should do the trick for the end.

edited Nov 20 '14 at 15:36

answered Nov 20 '14 at 14:34

Araucaria - Him

47,146

score 3 · Accepted Answer · answered Nov 20 '14 at 11:05

3

I'm not sure whether this question is opinion-based or not, so I'll provide an answer anyway.

Associate the word parallel with the number 121. If you can do that because of that number's pattern, you don't need to remember how to find which number to use, but double L looks like eleven. 11 × 11 = 121.

Use the digits in order to help with common misspellings: one R, two Ls then one L: parallel.

answered Nov 20 '14 at 11:05

Andrew Leach

101,901

You didn't explicitly mention it, but parallel = corresponding = "one-to-one" (one R, to/two Ls then one L). That works for me without needing to remember my 11 times table! – FumbleFingers Jun 03 '22 at 11:07

score 3 · Answer 3 · answered Nov 20 '14 at 12:04

3

How about:

The parallel train tracks go through the middle of my town.

answered Nov 20 '14 at 12:04

Ste

14,234

score 2 · Answer 4 · edited Nov 20 '14 at 13:11

2

Perhaps the information on etymonline can help.
Parallel Greek para meaning "beside" and Greek allos meaning "other".

As a mnemonic aid you could say the double l in the middle consists of two parallel lines.

edited Nov 20 '14 at 13:11

Mari-Lou A

91,183

answered Nov 20 '14 at 12:49

rogermue

13,878

score 2 · Answer 5 · answered Nov 20 '14 at 15:42

2

Imagine building a railway track (surely one of the easiest sets of parallel lines to picture).

Pick A Route And Lay Lines ELegantly

answered Nov 20 '14 at 15:42

Phil M Jones

6,286

Mnemonic for parallel

5 Answers5