Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Monday, February 23, 2015
American English vs British English III
Grammar and spelling differences between British and American English
Prepositions
There are also a few differences in preposition use including the following:
American English - on the weekend
British English - at the weekend
American English - on a team
British English - in a team
American English - please write me soon
British English - please write to me soon
Spelling differences between British and American English:
1. Some words that end in ‘-tre’ in British English end in ‘-ter’ in American English.
US theater, center
Brit. theatre, centre
2. Some words that end in ‘-our’ in British English end in ‘-or’ in American English.
US color, labor
Brit. colour, labour
3. Some words are shorter in American English than in British English.
US catalog, program
Brit. catalogue, programme
4. Some words that end in '-ize' in American English end in '-ise' in British English.
US recognize, patronizeBrit. recognise, patronise
(http://languagelearningbase.com)
How to Write a Formal Letter. Howcast Video
Business Letter Format and Templates
The format of business letters has slowly changed over time with the culture of business getting less and less formal.
Here are the components of a traditional full block business letters (shown in picture form and with explanations).
The format shown here is just a guide - variations and customizations are common - and not all elements are needed in every type of letter such as job application cover letters or thank-you letters.
(http://www.4hb.com)
TEMPLATES
Generate your English business letters per mouse click.
Choose the template and mark the checkboxes for the sentences you want to use in your business letter. The result can be copied into the clipboard or saved as TXT or RTF file (e.g. for MS-Word).
Choose a Template
( ego4u.com)
Business Letters. Useful Phrases
Useful
Phrases
Salutation
·
Dear Mr Brown
·
Dear Ms White
·
Dear Sir
·
Dear Sirs
·
Dear Madam
·
Dear Sir or Madam
·
Gentlemen
Starting
·
We are
writing to inform you that ...
to confirm ...
to request ...
to enquire about ...
to confirm ...
to request ...
to enquire about ...
·
I am
contacting you for the following reason.
·
I recently
read/heard about . . . and would like to know . . .
·
Having seen
your advertisement in ... , I would like to ...
·
I would be
interested in (obtaining/receiving) ...
·
I received
your address from ... and
would like to ...
·
I am writing
to tell you about ...
Referring to previous contact
·
Thank you
for your letter of March 15 ...
·
Thank you
for contacting us.
·
In reply to
your request ...
·
Thank you
for your letter regarding ...
·
With
reference to our telephone conversation yesterday ...
·
Further to
our meeting last week ...
·
It was a
pleasure meeting you in London last month.
·
I enjoyed
having lunch with you last week in Tokyo.
·
I would just
like to confirm the main points we discussed on Tuesday . . .
Making a
request
·
We would
appreciate it if you would ...
·
I would be
grateful if you could...
·
Could you
please send me . . .
·
Could you
possibly tell us/let us have...
·
In addition,
I would like to receive ...
·
It would be
helpful if you could send us ...
·
I am
interested in (obtaining/receiving...)
·
I would
appreciate your immediate attention to this matter.
·
Please let
me know what action you propose to take.
Offering
help
·
We would be
happy to ...
·
Would you
like us to ...
·
We are quite
willing to ...
·
Our company
would be pleased to ...
Giving good
news
·
We are
pleased to announce that ...
·
I am
delighted to inform you that ...
·
You will be
pleased to learn that ...
Giving bad
news
·
We regret to
inform you that ...
·
I'm afraid
it would not be possible to ...
·
Unfortunately
we cannot/we are unable to ...
·
After
careful consideration we have decided (not) to…
Complaining
·
I am writing
to express my dissatisfaction with ...
·
I am writing
to complain about ...
·
Please note
that the goods we ordered on (date) have not yet arrived.
·
We regret to
inform you that our order n°--- is now considerably overdue.
·
I would like
to query the transport charges which seem unusually high.
Apologizing
·
We are sorry
for the delay in replying ...
·
I regret any inconvenience caused
·
I would like
to apologize for (the delay/the inconvenience) ...
·
Once again,
I apologise for any inconvenience….
Orders
·
Thank you
for your quotation of ...
·
We are
pleased to place an order with your company for ...
·
We would
like to cancel our order n°...
·
Please
confirm receipt of our order.
·
I am pleased
to acknowledge receipt of your order n°...
·
Your order
will be processed as quickly as possible.
·
It will take
about (three) weeks to process your order.
·
We can
guarantee delivery before ...
·
Unfortunately
these articles are no longer available/are out of stock.
Prices
·
Please send
us your price list.
·
You will
find enclosed our most recent catalogue and price list.
·
Please note
that our prices are subject to change without notice.
·
We have
pleasure in enclosing a detailed quotation.
·
We can make
you a firm offer of ...
·
Our terms of
payment are as follows :
Referring to
payment
·
Our records
show that we have not yet received payment of ...
·
According to our records ...
·
Please send
payment as soon as possible.
·
You will
receive a credit note for the sum of
Enclosing
documents
·
I am enclosing ...
·
Please find enclosed ...
·
You will find enclosed ...
Closing
remarks
·
If we can be
of any further assistance, please let us know
·
If I can
help in any way, please do not hesitate to contact me
·
If you
require more information ...
·
For further details ...
·
Thank you
for taking this into consideration
·
Thank you
for your help.
·
We hope you
are happy with this arrangement.
·
We hope you
can settle this matter to our satisfaction.
Referring to future business
·
We look
forward to a successful working relationship in the future
·
We would be
(very) pleased to do business with your company.
·
I would be happy
to have an opportunity to work with your firm.
Referring to future contact
·
I look
forward to seeing you next week
·
Looking
forward to hearing from you
·
" " to
receiving your comments
·
I look
forward to meeting you on the 15th
·
I would appreciate
a reply at your earliest convenience.
·
An early
reply would be appreciated.
Ending
business letters
·
Yours faithfully,
·
Sincerely,
}
·
Yours
sincerely, } (for all
customers/clients)
·
Sincerely yours, }
·
Regards,
(for those you already know and/or
with whom you already have a working relationship.)
with whom you already have a working relationship.)
Business Letters. Vocabulary
VOCABULARY
|
Attachment
|
extra document or image that is added to an email
|
|
block
format
|
most common business letter format, single spaced,
all paragraphs begin at the left margin
|
|
Body
|
the content of the letter; between the salutation
and signature
|
|
Bullets
|
small dark dots used to set off items in an
unnumbered list
|
|
certified mail
|
important letters that sender pays extra postage for
in order to receive a notice of receipt
|
|
Coherent
|
logical; easy to understand
|
|
Concise
|
gets to the point quickly
|
|
confidential,personal
|
Prívate
|
|
diplomacy, diplomatic
|
demonstrating consideration and
kindness
|
|
direct mail, junk mail
|
marketing letters addressed to a large audience
|
|
double space
|
format where one blank line is left between lines of
text
|
|
Enclosure
|
extra document or image included with a letter
|
|
Formal
|
uses set formatting and business language, opposite
of casual
|
|
Format
|
the set up or organization of a document
|
|
Heading
|
a word or phrase that indicates what the text below
will be about
|
|
Indent
|
extra spaces (usually 5) at the beginning of a
paragraph
|
|
Informal
|
Casual
|
|
inside address
|
recipient's mailing information
|
|
justified margins
|
straight and even text, always begins at the same
place
|
|
Letterhead
|
specialized paper with a (company) logo or name
printed at the top
|
|
Logo
|
symbol or image that identifies a specific
organization
|
|
Margin
|
a blank space that borders the edge of the text
|
|
memorandum(memo)
|
document sent within a company (internal), presented
in short form
|
|
modified block format
|
left justified as block format, but date and closing
are centered
|
|
on arrival notation
|
notice to recipient that appears on an envelope
(e.g. "confidential")
|
|
Postage
|
the cost of sending a letter through the Post Office
|
|
Proofread
|
read through a finished document to check for
mistakes
|
|
Punctuation
|
marks used within or after sentences and phrases
(e.g. periods, commas)
|
|
reader-friendly
|
easy to read
|
|
Recipient
|
the person who receives the letter
|
|
right ragged
|
format in which text on the right side of the document
ends at slightly different points (not justified)
|
|
Salutation
|
greeting in a letter (e.g. "Dear Mr
Jones")
|
|
sensitive information
|
content in a letter that may cause the receiver to
feel upset
|
|
semi-block format
|
paragraphs are indented, not left-justified
|
|
Sincerely
|
term used before a name when formally closing a
letter
|
|
single spaced
|
format where no blanks lines are left in-between
lines of text
|
|
Spacing
|
blank area between words or lines of text
|
|
Tone
|
the feeling of the language (e.g. serious,
enthusiastic)
|
|
Transitions
|
words or phrases used to make a letter flow
naturally (e.g. "furthermore", "on the other hand")
|
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