writing part: formal letter»
FORMAL LETTER
STRUCTURE OF A FORMAL LETTER
THE EXAMPLE LETTER BELOW SHOWS YOU A GENERAL
LAYOUT FOR A FORMAL LETTER
THE FORMAL LETTER SHOULD CONTAINS:
Sender's Address
Date
Inside Address
Suitable grammar structures
Level of politeness, formality
Linking words
RULES FOR WRITING FORMAL LETTER
In English there are a number of conventions that should be used
Addresses:
when
1) Yourwriting a formal or business letter. Furthermore, you try to
Address
write
The as simply
return addressand as clearly
should as possible,
be written andright-hand
in the top not to make the letter
corner of
longer
the letter.than necessary. Remember not to use informal language like
contractions.
2) The Address of the person you are writing to
The inside address should be written on the left, starting below your
address.
Date:
Different people put the date on different sides of the page.
You can write this on the right or the left on the line after the
address you are writing to. Write the month as a word
S A L U TAT I O N O R G R E E T I N G :
1) Dear Sir or Madam,
If you do not know the name of the person you are writing to, use this. It
is always advisable to try to find out a name.
2) Dear Mr Jenkins,
If you know the name, use the title (Mr, Mrs, Miss or Ms, Dr, etc.) and the
surname only. If you are writing to a woman and do not know if she uses
Mrs or Miss, you can use Ms, which is for married and single women.
To Whom It May Concern,
Ending a letter:
1) Yours faithfully
If you do not know the name of the person, end
the letter this way.
2) Yours sincerely
If you know the name of the person, end the
letter this way.
INTRODUCTION
Introduction should be short and state the purpose of the letter- to make an enquiry, complain,
request something, etc.
Giving the reason for writing Making request
I am writing to enquire about …. Could you (possibly) …?
I am writing with the reference to I would be grateful if you could
your letter … ….
I am writing to apologize for … I would appreciate it if you could
I am writing to confirm …. ….
I am writing to request … Would you mind ….?
I am writing to complain about …
THE MAIN BODY OF LETTER
The main body of the formal letter should clearly state the points that
you want to make in your letter. As a general rule it is a good idea to
keep this as to the point as possible to ensure that the recipient remains
engaged. Longer letters may be more appropriate when making a
complaint as you may require to add more detail in order to convey the
importance of what you are putting across.
Agreeing to requests Giving bad news
I would be delighted to ... Unfortunately, ...
I would be pleased to ... I am afraid that ...
CONCLUSION AND THE END OF LETTER
The concluding paragraph of a formal letter should outline what
action you would like the recipient to take: to make a refund, to
send you information etc.
Closing remarks Finishing salutation
Enclosing/ attaching Reference to future contact
Please contact us again if we can help Yours faithfully, (if you don't know the
in any documents name
way / there areI am
any enclosing/attaching
problems / you of
... the person
I look you're
forwardwriting to)
to hearing
have any Yours sincerely,
Please find enclosed/attached from you(ifsoon.
you know the name
questions. ... of I look forward to meeting
Should you have any further
Enclosed/Attached the person
you will youyou're writing to)
next week.
questions/queries, please do not Best wishes, (if the person is a close
find ... I’m looking forward to
hesitate to business contact or friend)
contact us. seeing(if
Best regards, you
thenext
person is a close
If you need any further information, businessThursday.
contact or friend)
please
contact us again.
LINKING WORDS
Beginning:
first/ first of all/ secondly/ thirdly …
Reinforcement:
above all/ actually/ in addition/moreover/as well as/ furthermore/then/what is more
Comparison:
also/both …and ../likewise/ in the same way
Summary:
altogether/in conclusion/ to sum up/ all in all/thus/therefore
ABBREVIATIONS USED IN LETTER WRITING
The following abbreviations are widely used in letters:
• asap = as soon as possible
• cc = carbon copy (when you send a copy of a letter to more than one person,
you use this abbreviation to let them know)
• enc. = enclosure (when you include other papers with your letter)
• pp = per procurationem (A Latin phrase meaning that you are signing the
letter on somebody else's behalf; if they are not there to sign it themselves,
etc)
• ps = postscript (when you want to add something after you've finished and
signed it)
• pto (informal) = please turn over (to make sure that the other person knows
the letter continues on the other side of the page)
SAMPLE LETTER
