Sunday, March 25, 2018

Formal and Informal Email Phrases

GREETINGS
Formal
·       Dear Sir/ Madam,
·       Dear Sir or Madam,
·       To whom it may concern: (especially AmE)
·       Dear Mr/ Ms Jones,
·       Dear Dr Smith,
(note: First names are NOT used. Using Miss or Mrs to address a woman  is not appropriate, as you don’t know whether she’s married or not)
Informal
·       Hi Dennis,
·       Hello Claire,
·       Dear Mum,
(note: salutations are followed by a (,) comma, exception: ’To whom it may concern:’)

REASON FOR WRITING / REPLYING

Formal
·       I am writing to make a reservation/ to apply for the position of…/ to confirm my booking/ to ask for further information about 
·       I am writing with regard  to the sale of …/ to the complaint you made on 29th February
·       Thank you for your e-mail of 29th February regarding the sale of… / concerning the conference in Brussels.
·       With reference to our telephone conversation on Friday, I would like to let you know that…
Semi-formal / Informal
·       Just a quick note to invite you to…/ to tell you that…
·       This is to invite you to join us for...
·       Thanks for your e-mail, it was wonderful/great to hear from you.
·       I wanted to let you know that / tell you about / ask you if…


MAKING A REQUEST / ASKING FOR INFORMATION

Formal
·       Could you please let me know if you can attend … / if you are available for a meeting on 12th December?
·       I would appreciate it if you could please send me a brochure/ if you could please reply within two days.
·       Could you possibly arrange a meeting with the Logistics Manager?
·       I would also like to know if there are any swimming pools in your area.
·       Please let me know how much the tickets cost.
Informal
·       I was wondering if you could come and see me sometime next week.
·       Would you mind coming early to help me clear up the place?
·       Do you think you could call Jerry for me?
·       Can you call me/ get back to me asap? (as soon as possible)

OFFERING HELP / GIVING INFORMATION

Formal
·       We are happy to let you know that your article has been selected for publication.
·       I am glad to inform you that we will be holding our annual conference in Brussels on 20 September 2014.
·       We regret to inform you that the show has been cancelled due to bad weather conditions.
·       We are willing to arrange another meeting with the CEO.
·       We would be glad to send you another statement if necessary.
·       Please do let me know if I can be of further assistance.
·       Should you need any further information/assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Informal
·       I’m sorry, but I can’t make it tomorrow. (= I can’t come tomorrow.)
·       I’m happy to tell you that John and I are getting married next month.
·       Would you like me to come early and help you clear up the place?
·       How about I come and help you out?
·       Do you need a hand with moving the furniture?

COMPLAINING

Formal
·       I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with… / to complain about…
·       I regret to say that I was not completely satisfied with the room you provided us.
·       We regret to inform you that your payment is considerably overdue.
·       I would like to receive a full refund and compensation for the damages.
·       I am interested to hear how your company can compensate us for the distress we suffered.
Informal
·       I’m sorry to say that you’re late with the payments.
·       I hope you won’t mind me saying that the place you’d recommended to us wasn’t as nice as we’d expected.

APOLOGIZING

Formal
·       We would like to apologize for any inconvenience caused.
·       Please accept our apologies for the delay.
·       Please let us know what we can do to compensate you for the damages caused.
·       We will make sure that this will not happen again in the  future.
·       I am afraid I will not be able to attend the conference.
Informal
·       I’m sorry for the trouble I caused.
·       I apologize for the delay.
·       I promise it won’t happen again
·       I’m sorry, but I can’t make it to the meeting.

ATTACHING FILES

Formal
·       I am attaching my CV for your consideration.
·       I am sending you the brochure as an attachment.
·       Please see the statement attached.
·       Please find attached the file you requested.
·       I am afraid I cannot open the file you have sent me.
·       Could you send it again in … format?
Informal
·       I’m attaching/sending you the holiday photos.
·       Sorry, but I can’t open it. Can you send it again in … format?

ENDING

Formal
·       I look forward to hearing from you.
·       I look forward to hearing when you are planning to visit our town.
Informal
·       Hope to hear from you soon.
·       I’m looking forward to seeing you.

CLOSING FORMULA

Formal
·       Yours faithfully, (when you start with Dear Sir/ Madam,)
·       Yours sincerely, (when you start with the name e.g. Dear Ms Collins)
·       Sincerely Yours, (AmE)
·       Sincerely, (AmE)
·       Yours Truly, (AmE)
Informal
·       Love,
·       Thanks,
·       Take care,
·       Yours,
·       Best regards, (semi-formal, also BR)


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