# How to Construct Two Parallel Lines

When you need to construct a line that is parallel to another line, remember that there are always two parallels—the parallel above the line and the parallel below the line.

## Constructing Parallels—Method 1

Rule

### InstructionsforMethod1

1.
You have a line $l$, and you want to find a parallel line $x$ cm away.
2.
Mark two points on the line and call them $A$ and $B$.
3.
Construct $90$° angles at both $A$ and $B$—the normals.
4.
Set the distance between the legs of your draft compass to $x$ cm, put the point of the draft compass on $A$, and make a small arc across the corresponding normal. Call this intersection $D$.
5.
Do the same thing at $B$, but call this intersection $C$.
6.
Draw a line through $C$ and $D$. This line is parallel to $l$.

## Constructing Parallels—Method 2

Rule

### InstructionsforMethod2

1.
You have a line $l$, and you want to find a parallel line $x$ cm away.
2.
Mark a point on $l$ and call it $A$.
3.
Construct a $90$° angle at $A$—a normal.
4.
Set the distance between the legs of your draft compass to $x$ cm, put the point of the draft compass on $A$, and make a small arc across the normal. Call this intersection $D$.
5.
Construct a $90$° angle at $D$.
6.
The normal you constructed at $D$ is parallel to $l$.