Thank you for your letter in English. How to write a letter of request and a letter of application in English

Business correspondence on the English language often part of the job. Therefore, the question "How to write a letter in English?" relevant to many.

But even in addition to communicating with foreign partners, there are a number of life situations when we need to write a letter to a foreigner: it can be a letter to a university, to a foreign store, or a response to a job posting.

As a rule, the recipient of our letter does not know anything about us, therefore he forms his first impression on how we conduct correspondence. Which means no better way win over the interlocutor than a competent, politely written letter.

In this article, I'll explain how to write business letters the right way, give examples of commonly used phrases, and share links to resources where you can find samples.

How to write a business letter in English?

Of course, each correspondence is unique, and the content of the letters will be different. However, the general structure of the letter in English is approximately the same: a polite greeting, a logically constructed main body and a final phrase.

Let's look at this in detail.

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1. Greeting

Greetings in a business letter always begin with the word " Dear"("dear"). Next is the rank (official name associated with qualifications or official position), if any ( Dr. - "doctor", Judge- "judge", Professor- "Professor"). If not, then write Mr. or Ms. ("Mr" or "Ms/Mrs"). Only after that comes the name of our addressee:

Dear Mr. Jones

Dear Mr. and Ms. Smith

Dear Professor McDowell

! AT British English greeting ends comma:

Dear Dr. brown,
Dear Dr. Brown,

Dear Judge Cornwall,
Dear Judge Cornwall,

! AT American English The comma is used only for personal letters. In business correspondence, colon:

Dear Dr. Brown:
Dear Dr. Brown:

Dear Judge Cornwall:
Dear Judge Cornwall:

It also happens that we do not know who exactly we are writing to. For example, we send resumes to new job, and we weren't able to find out the name of the HR manager. In this case, instead of the last name, you can indicate the position:

Dear Personnel Director
Dear Recruiting Director

If even the position of a potential reader is unknown, then you can use the phrases:

To Whom It May Concern
To whom it may concern

Dear Sir or Madame
Dear Sir or Madam

2. Main body

After the greeting, we start a new line and proceed to the most important thing.

The body of the letter is usually divided into three parts:

• In the first, we immediately formulate what we are writing about. In response to a job posting, to ask a question or request some information, to confirm the date and time of an appointment, etc.
• In the second, we provide all the details and Additional information. For example, if we write to an employer, then it is here that we briefly describe our qualifications; if we want to ask a question, then in this section we explain the situation in detail, etc.
• In the third, we briefly summarize what was written and politely call the addressee to the action we need. For example, we refer the employer to the resume attached to the letter, or ask them to send us some data as soon as possible, or leave their contacts in case of questions.

Let's look at each of these points in detail.

2.1. Part one - "prehistory" of the letter

The purpose of the first paragraph is to immediately let the addressee understand what our letter will be about. If it has a "backstory": for example, it refers to an ad, telephone conversation, to another letter, this should definitely be clarified using the expressions " with reference to"("regarding..."), " with regard to"("relative to...") or " in response to"(" in response to ... "):

With reference to your advertisement for ___ position, published in ___.
Regarding your job posting ___ posted in ___.

With reference to your inquiry...
Regarding your request...

With reference to our meeting...
About [what was discussed at] our meeting...

With reference to our phone conversation yesterday...
About [what was discussed in] our telephone conversation...

In response to your letter of December 13th...
In reply to your letter of December 13th...

With regard to your question about...
Regarding your question about...

With regard to your last e-mail...
Regarding your last letter...

If no previous meetings or conversations connect you with the addressee, then you can immediately get down to business and clearly indicate the purpose of the letter.

So why are you writing? Are you responding to a request? Are you applying for a job? Confirm the date of the meeting or clarify some details? Your letter should immediately communicate this. Use the phrase " I am writing to"("I write to...") to name your goal. For example:

I am writing to inquire about...
I am writing to ask about...

I am writing to request further information about...
I am writing to request further information on…

I am writing to confirm that...
I am writing to confirm that...

I am writing to apply for...
I am writing to apply for...

This point and the backstory of the letter will end up in one paragraph, and often in one sentence! In total, our letter may begin something like this:

With reference to your phone call yesterday, I am writing to confirm that your order was sent.
About your yesterday phone call I am writing to confirm that your order has been shipped.

With reference to your inquiry I enclose the documents you"ve requested.
Regarding your request, I am enclosing the documents you requested.

I am writing with reference to your advertisement on headhunter.ru to apply for a position of...
I am writing about your ad on headhunter.ru to apply for a position….

I am writing to inquire about job vacancies in your company.
I am writing to inquire about vacancies at your company.

I am writing to request a copy of my medical record.
I am writing to request a copy of my medical record.

2.2. Part two - details of the letter

The next (second) paragraph is the "meat" of the letter. This is where you state the whole point of the matter, with as much detail as you require.

Remember that, as in Russian, a business letter implies polite tone!

If you are going to ask the addressee for something, use polite forms such as:

Could you...
Could you…

Would you please...
Could you please...

I would be grateful if you could...
I would be grateful if you could...

If you agree to your addressee's request, use the phrase " I would be delighted to" ("I would be glad"):

I would be delighted to attend the meeting.
I would be very happy to attend this meeting.

I would be delighted to provide more information.
I would be very happy to provide more information.

For a polite refusal, be sure to thank for the offer:

Thank you for your invitation, but...
Thanks for the invite, but...

If you need to attach additional documents to the letter, use the following phrases:

Please find enclosed...
Please find in attachments...

Enclosed is a...
Applications contain...

Enclosed are...
Applications contain...

I'm enclosing...
I enclose…

2.3. Part three - call to action

The last (third) paragraph serves to once again briefly formulate the goal and, if necessary, encourage the reader to act on the basis of the letter: for example, read your resume or consider a business proposal.

We hope that you"ll be able to take part in our conference on May 5, 2018.
We hope that you will be able to participate in our conference on May 5, 2018.

Please refund my $500 deposit and accept my apologies.
Please refund my $500 deposit and accept my apologies.

Please, send me these documents as soon as possible.
Please send me these documents as soon as possible.

If the letter is rather informative, then at the end you can simply leave a request to contact you if the addressee has any questions:

In case you have questions, feel free to contact me.
In case you have questions, please contact me.

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me.
If you have any questions, please contact me immediately.

Please, contact us again, if we can be of assistance.
Please contact us again if you need assistance.

Finally, if you want to make it clear that you are expecting a response from your reader, you can use the following phrases:

I "m looking forward to hearing from you soon.
Looking forward to your response.

I hope to hear from you soon.
I hope to receive your reply soon.

3. Conclusion

Now that we have outlined the most important thing, it remains only to finish the letter with one of the traditional phrases:

sincerely,
Yours sincerely,

respectfully yours,
Sincerely,

Kind regards, / Best regards, / Regards,
Best wishes,

After that, on a new line, we write our first and last name - and the letter is finished.

Examples of business letters in English

Examples of writing in English can be found on the following sites.

Resources in Russian with translation:

1. https://goo.gl/m8UEZQ

2. https://goo.gl/oSaQcp

Resources in English (no translation):

1. https://goo.gl/MdrvLk

2. https://goo.gl/8JqNPK

Friends, now you know the basic rules for writing business letters. Most importantly, do not forget about courtesy to your addressee! Save it and your time - write briefly, to the point and avoid "water". Good luck!

We live in an age information technologies Therefore, our whole life is connected in one way or another with computer technology, Internet. For example, there is hardly a firm whose employees do not conduct electronic correspondence with other organizations. If your company has partners abroad, then its employees must know the rules for writing business letter(in the native language and in a foreign language), which include not only the use of specific vocabulary, style, but also a certain format that should be followed.

So, let's see how to write a business letter ( business letter ). As a rule, three blocks are distinguished in an official letter:

— Introduction/Introduction

This part of the letter states the purpose of writing it.

— Main part letters/ body of the letter

On average, these are two to four paragraphs, in which the author of the letter informs the recipient, asks him questions, answers the recipient's questions contained in the previous letter.

— Final part/Conclusion

This part of the letter contains information about the subsequent actions of the recipient proposed by the sender, information about future contacts.

DESTINATION/ADDRESSEE

The text begins with an appeal to the addressee (addressee).

The sender may know the recipient's name, in which case the call might look like this:

Dear Mr. robinson,

Dear Mrs. seefob,

Dear Ms. Ching,

Dear Prof. Chensky,

A comma is placed after the recipient's name.

If you don't know the recipient's name, start your letter with one of the following phrases:

To whom it may concern,

Dear Sir,

Dear madam,

Dear Sir/Madam,

In this case, a comma is also included.

If your addressee is collective face, then the call looks like this:

Dear all,

Dear Colleagues,

Dear Marketing Team,

BODY LETTERS/ BODY OF THE LETTER

The body part of the letter may include formal style elements ( formal style), stylistically neutral vocabulary and professional vocabulary. You should also pay attention to the clichés that are traditionally used in business correspondence.

It is very important to remember that in official letters no abbreviations allowed type:

Don't- do not, isn't - is not won't - will not haven't - have not etc.

INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH /OPENING PARAGRAPH

The introductory paragraph suggests indication of the purpose of the letter , it can also express gratitude for the letter received earlier or any actions of the addressee. You can use the following cliches:

I am writing to ... - I write to ...

I am writing to confirm ... - I am writing to confirm ...

Thank you for contacting us… Thank you for writing to us...

Thank you for your letter dated… Thank you for your letter dated (date)...

With reference to your e-mail… In response to your email...

This is to confirm that ... - We hereby confirm that

FAVORABLE NEWS/GOOD NEWS

If you need to tell the recipient some positive information, use the following phrases:

We are delighted to confirm… We are very pleased to confirm...

We are pleased to tell you ... - We are pleased to inform you ...
You will be happy to know ... - You will be pleased to know ...

NEGATIVE NEWS/bad NEWS

Information of a negative nature is entered extremely correctly:

We regret to inform you ... - We regret to inform you ...

I am sorry, but ... - I apologize, but ...

I am sorry to say that ... - I regret to inform you that ...

I am afraid that we will not be able to… I'm afraid we can't...

INFORMATION REQUEST/REQUESTING INFORMATION

If you require certain information from the recipient, you can request it in this way:

We would appreciate it, if you could… We would be grateful to you if you could...
Could you…? - Could you…?

Please let us know... - Please let us know...

HELP OFFER/OFFERING HELP

In some cases, you have to offer your help to the addressee. To do this, you can use the following clichés:

We would be happy to help you with… We would be happy to help you with...
Would you like us to… ? “Would you like to…?”

SORRY/SAYING SORRY

In certain situations, the sender of the letter has to apologize:

We must apologize for ... - We must apologize for ...

We deeply regret that ... - We deeply regret that ...

We apologize for any inconvenience… We apologize for any inconvenience...
Please accept my sincere apologies for… Please accept my most sincere apologies for...

ATTACHED FILES/ATTACHING FILES

Business correspondence involves not only sending the letter itself, but also text or other files that are attached to the letter, which should be reported in the text of the letter:

Please find attached files…- Attached are the files below... See attachment...

I am attaching the following files…- I am sending you files ..., Attached hereto ...

CONCLUSION/CLOSING REMARKS

Having stated all the necessary information, you should proceed to the final part of the letter, formulating your further contacts with the addressee:

Do not hesitate to contact us if you require any further…- Contact us immediately if you need further...

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us…- If you have any questions, please contact us.

Thank you for your help. – Thank you for your help.

I look forward to hearing from you.- I look forward to hearing from you.

We look forward to seeing/meeting you.- We look forward to meeting you.

SIGNATURE/SIGNATURE LINE

When signing the text of the letter, indicate your name, preferably its full form. It is also necessary to indicate the position and contact information. The phrase " Yours sincerely" ("Sincerely") Should be written if at the beginning of the letter you indicated the name of the addressee.

In other cases, the choice of a clichéd phrase is determined by the nature of your relationship with the addressee. The table shows three groups of clichés - from the official style to the semi-official and informal:

Below the phrase you have chosen, the name and position of the sender are written. For example,

sincerely,

Angela Dooning
Administrative Assistant

Here is an example of a formal letter written in accordance with the requirements for a business letter:

Hello dear friends! AT business letter it is important to use the correct style and tone of language. Therefore, you should avoid:

• colloquial expressions, slang and jargon
• abbreviations (I'm; it's; don't, etc., use full forms)
• emotionally colored words - terrible (terrible), rubbish (nonsense), etc.

The structure of the letter in English:

1. Sender's address
2. Date (date)
3. Recipient's address (inside address)
4. Salutation
5. Introduction (opening sentence)
6. Body text (body of the letter)
7. Closing sentence
8. Final polite phrase (complimentary close)
9. Sender's signature (signature)
10. Application (enclosure)

business letter example

Standard expressions in business correspondence

How to respond to complaints

English for Business_1

1. Could you bear with me for 10 minutes while I get to the bottom of what went
   wrong here?
2. I'm terribly sorry for the problems you're experiencing.
3. I can imagine that was terrible.
4. I propose that we offer you some sort of compensation.
5. I'll make sure that it gets done by the end of the week.
6. That must have been dreadful.
7. Could you tell me exactly what happened?
8. I do apologize for our part in this.

Now you answer

English for Business-2

1 And I had to wait for over an hour at the airport before the taxi came to pick me up.
…
2 The whole conference was a farce! Delegates were wandering from room to
room and nobody knew where they should be or what was happening. What went wrong?
…
3 And it was all your company's fault.
…
4 So what are you going to do about it?
…

Do You Speak English? — Big Train — BBC comedy

One of the most difficult tasks not only in English, but also in Russian, is to conduct business correspondence and, in principle, write letters in a formal style. In this article, we will tell you how to write a letter of request (letter of request) and a letter of application (letter of application) in English correctly, give lists of phrases that will help you quickly and correctly compose such letters, and also attach examples of letters.

Request letter in English. letter of request

A letter of request (letter of request, letter of request of permission) is one of the types of business correspondence that is used if there is a need to apply for:

1. Permission to use any material legally owned by others.
2. Permission to conduct an interview or meeting.
3. Assistance in organizing or holding an event.
4. Information (clarifying documents, information about the cost of a particular product, its availability in the catalog, etc.).
5. Advice on any organizational action or decision.
6. Advice to an expert in any field.

The letter should begin with your address (the name and address of the company you represent), followed by the name and address of the company you are applying to.

Each item of the request letter in English should be presented in a separate paragraph. State the purpose of your letter in the first paragraph. Be polite but direct. It is important to write to the point, maintaining a formal business style.

If applicable, please indicate deadline fulfill your request, as well as provide clarifying information about yourself and the current situation. Add your phone number and address Email and offer to contact you in case of any questions.

End the letter by thanking the recipient for their help and attention to this request.

In a request letter in English, you can use the following phrases:

An example of a request letter in English for permission:

Example of a request letter

Application letter in English. Letter of application

A letter of application (letter of application, letter of application for a course) is most often an attachment to a resume, but it is also written when entering a university, college or short courses. This letter should include detailed information about your education and experience. This will increase your chances of getting the desired position or enrolling in the chosen educational institution.

At the beginning of the letter, you should indicate the name and address of the educational institution or company, and, if necessary, the name and position of the person you are addressing.

As with any business letter, each paragraph of your application should be covered in a separate paragraph. The first paragraph should state the purpose of your letter. Then you need to describe in detail about your qualifications and experience. You can also indicate your life goals and interests. Mention everyone educational institutions that you attended, share information about the courses and internships that you took. Next, you should indicate the reasons that prompted you to apply to this educational institution or send a resume to this particular company.

You should adhere to the official business style of speech, be polite and honest, give only reliable facts.

At the end of the letter, indicate which supporting documents you are attaching to the letter. Express your appreciation for the consideration of your application and hope for a prompt positive response. After signing, you can provide your contact details.

In an application letter in English, you can use the following phrases:

An example of an application letter in English for admission to a training course.