Opening
/ Salutation
1)
If you
are sure of the identity
of the person receiving the letter, you can use :
Dear Mr.
…..., or
Dear Mr.
…..., or
Dear
Ms. …...,
2)
If you
are NOT sure of the identity
of the person receiving the letter, you can use :
Dear
Sir / Madam,
You can also use :
You can also use :
To whom it may
concern
This
is the correct phrase :
To whom it may concern
To whom it may concern
You
CANNOT Say :
To
who
it may concern (x)
or
To
whom it may concerned
(x)
*
Try
to avoid phrases like “Honored Sir” or “Respected Sir”
Closing
Yours
sincerely,
Yours
faithfully,
Yours truly,
Please remember that it should be
“Yours”
You
CANNOT
say :
Your
sincerely, (X)
(without 's') or
You're
sincerely,
(X) or
You's
sincerely, (X)
*
A
few points to remember :
1)
If you open the letter with Dear
Mr. Smith or Dear Ms. Lim
(that means you KNOW
the recipient or KNOW
the name of the recipient), then you close the letter with :
Yours sincerely,
Yours sincerely,
2)
If you open the letter with Dear
Sir or Dear Madam (that
means you do NOT
KNOW
the recipient or do NOT
KNOW
the
name of the recipient ), then you close the letter with : Yours
faithfully,
Revert
A common phrase in most Asian letters
is the use of the word “revert” :
Please revert
back to me at your convenience.
I will revert
back to you as soon as possible.
Although this is a common practice in
most letters, the actually meaning of “revert”
is :
1)
to return to a previous condition / state / habit / practice / belief
For example :
i) We
reverted
to the old way of doing things.
ii) Once he was released from prison,
he reverted
to his wicked ways.
wicked : means evil / bad
2) Law : To return to the former owner or the owner's heirs
For example :
1) The house reverted
to her after she paid off the loans on the house.
So the use of “Revert” to mean
“Reply” or “Respond” is not
correct.
It is better to say :
I will get back to you as soon as
possible.
I will send a reply to you as soon as
possible.
I will respond asap.
(asap : as soon as possible)
Undersigned
The correct phrase is :
Please contact the undersigned.
(must have 'ed'
: undersigned)
NOT
: Please contact the undersign. (no 'ed' – WRONG)
However, the use of the word
“undersigned” has been found to be too formal and distant
especially when writing to your superior so it is better
to use a pronoun like “me”.
'I' or “us”.
For example :
Please contact me
when
you receive this letter.
If you have any questions, please
contact me.
The undersigned
will visit you tomorrow.
(NOT so appropriate).
(NOT so appropriate).
Better to say
: I will visit you tomorrow.
Here are a few other phrases that can
be avoided as they have become clichés.
cliché : a word or phrase that has
lost originality or impact because of overuse (used too many times)
It is not
wrong to use these phrases but
it is best to avoid them.
- Please do not hesitate to contact me. (it is to be avoided as most readers do not hesitate.
It is better to say : Please contact me.) - Kindly contact me if you have any questions. (“Kindly” is common in Malaysia English. It is better to use the word “Please”. For example : Please contact me if you have any questions.
Regard
When you say :
Please send my regards
to your family.
Please give my regards
to your husband.
With regards.
(* used in the closing part of a letter)
Kind regards.
(* used in the closing part of a letter)
*In this context, it has to be
“regards” (with an 's').
You CANNOT say : regard (No
's' - WRONG)
However, when you want to say :
With regard to
your question,
In this
regard, I have to agree with her.
(Means : In this matter/issue/subject, I have to agree with her).
(Means : In this matter/issue/subject, I have to agree with her).
In regard to
* In this context, you CANNOT
USE 's'.
So it should be : regard
So it should be : regard
“With regard to” is more
commonly used instead of
“In regard to”.
“In regard to”.
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