MAIN I TERM: Writing II TERM: Writing III References Tests Tables Dictionary

Writing articles Writing news reports Writing Film/Book reviews

Formal letters Health and fitness (Letter of application 1) Letters of application (Letter of application 2) Letters giving an opinion Letters of complaint Topic Sport Transactional latters-2

Punctuation Rules of Punctuation Assessment and Proposal Reports Sport

Writing Test

Structure of written works Appendix I: Linking Words\Phrases Appendix IIa: Opening and Closing Remarks For Letters Appendix IIb: Useful Vocabulary for Letters

Rules for Punctuation

Capital letter
A capital letter is used:

to begin a sentence. e.g. There's a great film playing at the cinema.
for days of the week, months and public holidays. e.g. This year, Christmas Day falls on the last
Sunday of December.
for names of people and places. e.g. My best friend's name is Claire and she's
from Cardiff, Wales .
for people's titles. e.g. Mr and Mrs Graham; Dr Stevens; Professor
Brown; etc.
for nationalities and languages,e.g. They are French. We love Italian cuisine. He's fluent in Portuguese and German.
for the first word and/or the most important words (e.g. nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs) of titles of books, films, plays, TV programmes, etc.

e.g. The Sixth Sense
Indiana Jones and the Lost Temple
Alice in Wonderland

Note: The personal pronoun I is always a capital letter, e.g. George and I are going to the funfair.

Full stop(.)
A full stop is used:
• to end a sentence that is not a question or an
exclamation,

e.g. I'm having a wonderful time. There's so much to do
here.

Italics
Italics are used:

to show the titles of books, plays, newspapers, films, etc.

e.g. The Hunchback of Notre Dame Romeo and Juliet The Daily Mail Braveheart

show names of hotels, restaurants, etc.

e.g. The Majestic Hotel Cleo's Grill House

Comma(,)
A comma is used:
•    to separate words in a list.
e.g. We need eggs, milk, cheese and butter.
•    to separate phrases or clauses.
e.g. He stopped walking, looked down, and realised that he was still wearing his slippers.
•    to separate long sentences linked by and, but, as, or, etc.
e.g. Susan had a very bad cold, but she still went to the
party.
Ann brought some delicious egg sandwiches, and
Tim brought his famous chocolate brownies.
•    to separate a non-identifying relative clause (i.e. a
clause giving extra information which is not essential to
the meaning of the main clause) from the main clause.
e.g. Maria, who is a ballerina, lives in Paris.
The local market, where you can buy exotic spices, is located on the High Street.
•    after certain linking words/phrases (e.g. in addition to
this, for example, however, in conclusion, etc).
e.g. In addition to this, Fred is a collector of antique watches.
•    when if-clauses begin sentences.
e.g. If we had taken her advice, we wouldn't have got lost. Note: No comma is used, however, when the if-clause follows the main clause.
•    before and/or after expressions such as: he/she said, said
Tom/Mary, etc. when reporting someone's exact words,
e.g. Opening the door, he said, "Wake up children, it's
time to get ready for your trip." but: "I am exhausted," said the firefighter.
•    to separate question tags from the rest of the sentence,
e.g. Ms Jones is your history teacher, isn't she?

Question mark (?)
A question mark is used:
• to end a direct question, e.g. How old are you?
Note: A question mark is not used to end an indirect question, e.g. He asked me how old I was.

Exclamation mark (!)
An exclamation mark is used: • to end an exclamatory sentence, i.e. a sentence showing
admiration, surprise, joy, anger, etc. e.g. That's great news! What a beautiful baby!

Quotation mark (‘’ “”)
A quotation mark is used:
• in direct speech to report the exact words someone said,
e.g. 'My flight is leaving at 9am,' said Pamela.
'Where are you from?' he asked us.
•for quotations (i.e. phrases taken from books, plays,
etc), sayings and proverbs.
e.g. All in all, I believe that life would be boring without music. As Robert Fripp once said, "music is just a means of creating a magical state." My grandfather used to say that 'an apple a day, keeps the doctor away.'

Colon(:)
A colon is used: • to introduce a list.
e.g. There were four of us on the boat: my mother, my father, my cousin Jane and me.

Semicolon (;)
A semicolon is used:
• instead of a full stop, sometimes to separate main sentences when their meaning is connected. Semicolons are not used as frequently as full stops or commas.
e.g. Some teenagers find it extremely hard to choose a career; others consider it a fairly easy choice.

Dots (…)
• Three dots are used to show that words have been left out from a quotation, proverb, sentence, etc.
e.g. As Edward Guthman once said, ‘Thirty seconds on the evening news is worth a front page headline...'

Brackets ( )
Brackets are used:

to separate extra information from the rest of the sentence.

e.g. These days, you can buy popular newspapers (i.e. The New York Times, Le Monde, etc) almost anywhere in the world.

Apostrophe(’)
An apostrophe is used:
•    in short forms to show that one or more letters or
numbers have been left out.
e.g. I'm (= I am) writing because I've (= I have) got great news. I left for Canada in the summer of '95. (= 1995)
•    before or after the possessive -s to show ownership or
the relationship between people.
e.g. Tom's bicycle, my sister's son (singular noun + 's) my parents' car (plural noun +') women's shoes (Irregular plural + 's) Study the examples: e.g. Look at that peacock! Aren't its feathers beautiful?
(its = possessive adjective) but: It's (= it is) a beautiful day, isn't it?
Our school is very big. Ifs got (= it has got) three floors and a huge gymnasium.
•    to form the plurals of letters, numbers or abbreviations,
e.g. She often writes j's instead of g's.Package holidays became extremely popular in the1980's.
UNICEF’s efforts to raise money for children living in
developing countries have been extremely successful.

Hyphen (-)
A hyphen is used:

to form a compound word.

e.g. kind-hearted; ten-year-old boy; seventy-nine; tape-recording; well-dressed; water-ski; etc

Dash (--)
A dash is used:
• in informal English, the same way as a colon от
semicolon.
e.g. There are three things I couldn't imagine living without - my best friend, a good book and my dog.
• to introduce something that you thought of or added
later, or something surprising, unexpected, etc.
e.g. They're closing down the old library - at least that's what I've heard.

Opening and Closing Remarks for Letter

LETTERS:

INFORMAL

SEMI-FORMAL

FORMAL

Giving news

Opening Remarks:

Closing Remarks:

(You'll never) guess what ...

That's all my news for now ...

I'm writing to tell you about...

Write and tell me your news.

1 am writing to inform you of...

[ would appreciate your thoughts on this matter.

Making an invite

Opening Remarks:

Closing Remarks:

I'm writing to invite you to ...

Hope you can make it - it'll be great fun!

We would be very pleased if you could come...

Please let us know if you can come.

We would be honoured if you

could attend...

We would be grateful if you could notify us regarding whether...

Accepting an invitation

Opening Remarks:

Closing Remarks:

Thanks a lot for the invitation.

I'd love to come...

See you then!

Thank you for your kind invitation;

we would love to join you ...

We look forward to seeing you.

Thank you for your kind invitation.

We would be delighted to attend...

Thank you once more for your kind invitation.

Refusing an invitation

Opening Remarks:

Closing Remarks:

Thanks a lot for the invitation but I

won't be able to make it...

Sorry again. Maybe next time!

Thank you for your kind invitation.

However, we will not be able to

come...

Perhaps we can get together soon.

Thank you for your kind invitation.

Unfortunately, we will be unable

to attend...

I hope that in the future we might have the opportunity to meet.

Asking for advice

Opening Remarks:

Closing Remarks:

I've got a problem, and I think you can help.

Write back soon and tell me what you think.

I'd really like your advice about/ on...

I really hope you can help me.

I am writing to request some advice concerning...

I would greatly appreciate your

assistance in this matter.

Giving advice

Opening Remarks:

Closing Remarks:

I'm sorry to hear ... and I think I can help.

Let me know what happens.

I'm very sorry to hear that you're having problems with...

I hope everything turns out well.

I am writing with regard to your letter requesting advice concerning

I hope to have been of assistance to you.

Asking for information

Opening Remarks:

Closing Remarks:

I'm thinking of... and I wondered

if you could help me out.

Hope you can help!

I'm considering... and I'd like it if

you could give me some

information.

I would appreciate any help you can give me...

I would greatly appreciate it if

you could provide me with some

information on...

Thank you in advance for your kind cooperation...

Opening and Closing Remarks for Letters

LETTERS:	INFORMAL	SEMI-FORMAL	FORMAL 1
Giving information
Opening Remarks:	I've looked into ...	I'm writing in reply to your letter asking for information on ...	1 am writing in response to your letter requesting information on ...
Closing Remarks:	Hope this was what you wanted ... t	I hope you find this useful...	Do not hesitate to contact me should you require further assistance.
Thanking
Opening Remarks:	Thanks a lot for...	Thank you very much for...	I am writing to express my gratitude for...
Closing Remarks:	Thanks again!	It was very good of you to ...	I am extremely grateful for...

Opening Remarks:	I'm really sorry about...	I am writing to apologise for...	I am writing to offer my sincere apologies regarding...
Closing Remarks:	Please say you'll forgive me ...	Please accept my apology ...	Once again, please accept our sincerest apologies...
Congratulating
Opening Remarks:	I'm just writing to say well done ...	I was really happy/pleased to hear that...	May I congratulate you on ...
Closing Remarks:	Well done!	You really deserve (your) success.	Once again, congratulations.
of Applications
Opening Remarks:			I am writing to apply for the position ...
Closing Remarks:			I look forward to hearing from you...
of Complaint
Opening Remarks:			I am writing to draw your attention to ...
Closing Remarks:			I hope that this matter can be resolved...
Making Requests
Opening Remarks:	Could you do something for me?	I wondered if you could possibly do me a favour.	I would be most grateful if you could...
Closing Remarks:	I hope you can help me out.	I hope it isn't too much trouble.	Thank you in advance for your assistance in this matter.

Appendix I: Linking Words / Phrases

To state personal opinion:	*In my opinion, 1 In my view, 1 To my mind, / (Personally) I believe that* /1 feel (very) strongly that / It seems to me that / / think that people should be encouraged to use public transport in the city.
To list advantages and disadvantages:	*One advantage of 1 Another advantage of 1 One other advantage of 1 The main advantage of 1 The greatest advantage of 1 The first advantage of* having your own business is that you do not* have to lake orders.* *One disadvantage of* 1 Another disadvantage of/ One other disadvantage of/ The main *disadvantage of 1 The greatest disadvantage of/ The first disadvantage of* having your own business is that you have to work long hours.
To list points:	*First(ly), 1 First of all, 1 In the first place, 1 To start with,* / To begin with, / Secondly, / *Thirdly, 1 Finally,* everyone knows that* smoking is extremely bad for one's health.*
To show sequence:	*BEGINNING: First, / To start with, / To begin with, / First of all,* get everyone out of the building. CONTINUING: Secondly, /After this/that, 1 Then, I Next, call the fire brigade. CONCLUDING: Finally, 1 Lastly, I Last hut not least keep a safe distance from the fire. \
To add more points on the same topic:	*What is more, 1 Furthermore, j Moreover, / Apart from this/that, / In addition (to this), / Besides (this),* dogs are very useful in police work. Dogs are also very useful in police work. *Dogs* cue very useful in police work too. Not only do dogs help the blind, but they are very useful in police work as well.
To show cause:	The BBC decided not to show the programme because / due to the fact that / since* / as* it would upset too many people. The programme would upset too* many people; for this reason / therefore the BBC* decided not to show it.
To show effect / result / consequences:	She won a scholarship therefore,* 1 so* / *consequently, 1 as a consequence, / as a result, /* *for this* reason, she was able to continue her studies.
To show purpose:	He decided to learn Russian so that* he could read Tolstoy. He decided to learn Russian so as to 1 in order to read Tolstoy.*

To give examples:	*For instance, / For example,* by running, swimming or jogging three times a week you feel younger and live longer. By taking regular exercise such as/ *like* running, swimming or jogging you feel younger and live longer. If you want to feel younger and live longer, you should take regular exercise, particularly, I *in particular,* / especially, running, swimming or jogging.
To show contrast:	Seatbelts are known to save lives, yet* / however, / nevertheless, /but / nonetheless, many people* refuse to wear them. *Although 1 Even though 1 In spite of the fact that / Despite the fact that* seatbelts are known to save lives, many people refuse to wear them.
To show time:	Turn the dial when /whenever / before / as soon as / the buzzer sounds. I haven't been back home since* 1982.* We met as I was crossing the street. I saw him while I* was crossing the street.* We never see each other now* that they've moved to another neighbourhood.*
Relatives:	That's the woman who* lives next door to me. He's the man whose car was stolen yesterday.* That's the cat which* scratched me. London is the city where I was born.*
To introduce a conclusion:	*Finally, /Lastly, /All in all, /Taking everything into account, / On the whole,* / All things considered, /In conclusion, / To sum up,* no one is likely to find a cure for the common cold in the near future.*

Useful Vocabulary for Letters

LETTERS:	INFORMAL	SEMI-FORMAL	FORMAL 1
Making an invitation	Let me tell you when & where ... By the way, it's a fancy dress party/formal ceremony... You can stay over if you like ... There'll be plenty of food/drink ... You won't need to bring anything...	These are the details of... It will be a fancy dress party/ formal occassion... If you need somewhere to stay... Refreshments will be provided ... It won't be necessary to ...	The party/wedding/ceremony will be held on ... at...
Accepting an invitation			Be advised that the party/ occassion is... Accommodation can be provided by arrangement... The catering arrangements have been made... You will not be required to ...
	What a great way to celebrate ... By the way, if you need help with ... Can I bring my friend, Brian?	It's a wonderful way to celebrate ... If you would like any help ... Could I invite a friend to come too?	I'm sure it will be a wonderful occasion. Should you require assistance... Would it be possible for ... to accompany me?

Refusing an invitation	I can't make it because ... I've got plans for that weekend ...	I won't be able to come because ... I have already arranged to ...	I am unable to attend due to ... I am otherwise engaged ...

Asking for information	Do you know anything about... I also need to know about... I want to find out about... as well. Can you also let me know if... I would be glad to ...	Do you have information about... I would also like to know... In addition, could you tell me ... Please could you also... I would be grateful for...	What information do you hold on... Could you also provide details of... Furthermore, it would be useful to have information concerning... Please would you include ... ... would be appreciated ...
Giving information
	I have sent you a ... To answer your question about... Did you know that...? This information should help you ...	This letter includes a ... In response to your enquiry about... Were you aware of...? This information should be useful to you...	Please find enclosed a ... Regarding your request for... May I bring to your attention ... The following information may be of use to you ...
Apologising
	I'm really sorry for/about... It wouldn't have happened if... ' I admit that it was my fault... I didn't mean to ...	I apologise for... It happened because of... I am to blame for... It was not intentional...	Please accept my apologies for... The situation arose due to... The fault is entirely mine ... It was not my intention to ...

Making requests	I really need... Can I ask you to...	I'd like... Could I ask you to ...	I wish to request... Would it be possible for you to ...

Giving advice	Why don't you...	If I were you, I'd ...	I would suggest that...