Email and letter: useful language
Opening and closing, giving news, asking for information and making suggestions – formal and informal.
In the email or letter, the most important thing is to choose the right tone for the reader. A friend expects a relaxed, chatty style; a manager or a company expects polite, formal language. Mixing the two – 'Dear Sir, how's it going?' – is the most common mistake. Decide who you are writing to before you write a single word.
Starting and finishing
Asking and suggesting
Giving news, thanking and apologising
Make it better
The same idea, first in basic English, then in the kind of language that gets a higher mark.
- Basic: Dear Sir, I want information about the course.Better: Dear Sir or Madam, I am writing to enquire about the course.Formal emails start by saying why you are writing, politely.
- Basic: Send me the details.Better: I would be grateful if you could send me the details.Commands sound rude in a formal email.
- Basic: Hi! Yours faithfully, AnaBetter: Hi! … Best wishes, Ana'Yours faithfully' is only for very formal letters to someone whose name you don't know.
- Basic: Dear Tom, I am writing to inform you that I went to Rome.Better: Hi Tom, guess what? I went to Rome!For a friend, a relaxed style is better.
Read the task and underline who you are writing to. Then choose your opening and closing phrases first – they set the tone for everything else. In formal emails, never use contractions (I'm, don't) or exclamation marks.
Quick check
Choose the best answer.
🇪🇸 Guía en español: Los 40 phrasal verbs más útiles para el B2 First →