How to start a letter?

Question

Hi, could someone send me some formal ways to start a letter, I thought about Dear XXXXX XXXXXX but I doesnt even know her, so as english is not my mother thoung lenguage I have no idea how to start, also could someone send me the "high" words of other words (that is for example: at all- whatsoever, etc) thanks

Answer 1

"Dear Mr. Lastename," is the common salutation, regardless of your audience.
If you don't have a name, use "To Whom it may Concern,"
English does not have much in the way of "high" words, so don't use words you think are impressive unless you know what they mean. I would rather have a clear letter using simple words that one with big words used incorrectly.

Answer 2

The conventional way to start a formal personal letter to a woman you don't know well is "Dear Ms. Xxxxx". (Yes, it may seem overly familiar to a someone outside the culture, but it is indeed the traditional way -- the equivalent of "Estimada".)


I'm not sure what you mean by "high" words.

If you want to use only formal and polite words -- that is, you want avoid all slang and vernacular words -- then rely on your dictionary or a native speaker.

If, instead, you want to use learned and impressive words, I would advise you against it. The style is too subtle for a non-native to achieve by vocabulary alone, and many modern readers find such a style puzzling, insulting, or amusing even when it is done perfectly.

Answer 3

Here's a website to help you out:

http://www.usingenglish.com/articles/letter-writing.html

To bring up more helpful websites, just google or search the Internet using this phrase: formal English letter writing

As for specific words to be used, you could get yourself a thesaurus which translates the words from your language into English. A thesaurus is a book of synonyms and often contains phrases, not just words, which mean the same as other phrases or words. It can be a very valuable tool for writing just about anything.

Good luck with your letter writing.

Answer 4

Actually, in English, starting out a letter with "Dear" is perfectly appropriate, unlike Spanish that has the formal and informal registery of Querido and Estimado. If you start your letter with Dear NAME, you will not be using it incorrectly as you would be when you use Querido instead of Estimado.

Answer 5

Hello _________,

Hi ________,

Greetings ________,