In a liquid crystal display device, a liquid crystal layer is provided between a principal substrate and an opposing substrate that are disposed so as to face each other, and a shared electrode and a pixel electrode, which is a parallel electrode pair formed in the shape of a comb, are formed on the surface of the principal substrate that faces the opposing substrate. Orientation films are also formed on the opposing surfaces of the principal substrate and the opposing substrate. The electrodes of the parallel electrode pair are formed so that the width thereof is smaller than the thickness of the liquid crystal layer. The orientation of the liquid crystal molecules between the electrodes is thereby changed by an electric field generated by the parallel electrode pair, and the orientation of liquid crystal molecules disposed above the electrodes is changed in the same direction as in the liquid crystal molecules between the electrodes in accordance with the change in orientation of the liquid crystal molecules between the electrodes. A high degree of transmittance can thereby be achieved by a simple electrode structure in an in-plane switching liquid crystal display device.