10/18/2016

FormalandInformalEmailPhrasesStartingwithGreetings

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Formal and Informal Email Phrases

from Greetings to Closing
Phrases!
10.28.2013

Melinda Makkos

Business English, English Writing Skills

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Whether youre writing to friends, colleagues or to a potential business partner, your

main goal is to get your message across, in other words, to ensure the recipient
understands you.
If you use improper or incorrect language and continuously makemistakes in your email, not only might you fail to make yourself understood, you might also fail to make a
good impression on the reader.
To avoid this, you can run your e-mail through a grammar and spell checker, however,
this in itself wont guarantee that youre using the right words and expressions.

Use:
Grammarly grammar and spell checker

In this article, youll nd examples of language that are commonly used in di erent types
of emails, and hopefully,youll nd the most appropriate one for your message.

The examples are labelled formal and informal- please note that most informal
expressions are perfectly suitable to use in semi-formal situations, such as between
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FormalandInformalEmailPhrasesStartingwithGreetings

expressions are perfectly suitable to use in semi-formal situations, such as between

business associates who have worked together for some time and have established a
good relationship.

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 dontknow whether shes married or not)
Informal
Hi Dennis,
Hello Claire,
Dear Mum,
(note: salutations are followed by a (,) comma, exception: To whom it may concern:)

Read more:
Other Ways To Say NICE TO MEET YOU!
19 Email Templates for Business Communication

REASON FOR WRITING / REPLYING

Formal
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FormalandInformalEmailPhrasesStartingwithGreetings

I am writing to make a reservation/ to apply for the position of/ to con rm 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

Read more:
Making Complaints in English: in a restaurant, on the phone, by letter
7 Simple Examples of Business Email Writing in English

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)

Read more:
18 Powerful Websites to Improve Your Writing Skills in English
Asking Giving Opinions Agreeing and Disagreeing in English

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FormalandInformalEmailPhrasesStartingwithGreetings

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
Im sorry, but I cant make it tomorrow. (= I cant come tomorrow.)
Im 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?

Read more:
Im not good at asking questions in English. Can you help?

COMPLAINING
Formal
I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with / to complain about
I regret to say that I was not completely satis ed with the room you provided us.
We regret to inform you that your payment is considerably overdue.
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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
su ered.
Informal
Im sorry to say that youre late with the payments.
I hope you wont mind me saying that the place youd recommended to us wasnt as nice
as wed expected.

Read more:
Hilarious Homophones. 50 Stupid Writing Mistakes to Avoid

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
Im sorry for the trouble I caused.
I apologize for the delay.
I promise it wont happen again
Im sorry, but I cant make it to the meeting.

Read more:
Other Ways to Say SORRY!

Hi, I'm Ana. I would like to send you

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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 nd attached the le you requested.
I am afraid I cannot open the le you have sent me.
Could you send it again in format?
Informal
Im attaching/sending you the holiday photos.
Sorry, but I cant open it. Can you send it again in format?

Read more:
What are the main types of sentence structures?

ENDING
Formal
I look forward to hearing from you.
I look forward to hearing when you are planning to visit our town.

Informal

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Hope to hear from you soon.
Im looking forward to seeing you.

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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)

Read more:
6 Ways to Improve Your English Writing Skills

One more thing to keep in mind is that in formal correspondence contractions are rarely
used, so remember to write I do not instead of I dont or they cannot instead of they
cant and so on.
Keep learning, keep writing practice makes perfect and let me know if I can help you
with anything.
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Formal and Informal Email Phrases - from Greetings to Closing

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Asking how to improve your email writing? Use these formal and
informal email phrases to make your business emails and general
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emails look great! From opening to closing. All in one place!

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WRITTEN BY: MELINDA MAKKOS

Melinda Makkos enjoys a rewarding and successful career as an English

Language Teacher. She was living in London, England when she fell in love
with the language and decided to study English and American Literature at
college. Since then, she has worked for schools and language schools all
over Europe teaching general and business English to various age groups.

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