"EITHER to verb1 OR to verb2" vs "to EITHER verb1 OR verb2"

Question

Are both these statements grammatically correct, per GMAT rules?

It is critical EITHER   to   RUN or   to   FLY.

It is critical   to   EITHER RUN or FLY.

(This came up as I was reading through MGMAT's Guide 8, Pg 216. It's not a direct question from the book, just a thought.)

rajeevrks27 · Answer

yes, IMO both are correct and the rules are well written on parallel markers and parallelism. So, once a parallel marker is used, what follows the parallel marker should be parallel.

boomtangboy · Answer

Hi,

Ya both are correct. Either... or is a parallel construction "TAG"

In order for it to be parallel

EITHER to RUN or  to FLY. 
to EITHER  RUN or FLY .

I hope this helps

DmitryFarber · Answer

They are both OK grammatically, but they can be interpreted differently.

It is critical to EITHER RUN or FLY.
This means it is critical to do one of these things--we can choose one or the other.

It is critical EITHER to RUN or to FLY.
This could mean that either it is critical to run or it is critical to fly. So one is critical, and perhaps the other isn't, but we don't know which is which.

"EITHER to verb1 OR to verb2" vs "to EITHER verb1 OR verb2"

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards