1. IELTS WRITING
- Dr.Hasib
IELTS WRITING TASK -2
In Writing Task 2 you receive a topic and you have to write an essay of 250 words.
This task has more weight than Writing 1. It also takes longer – 40 minutes, when
Writing 1 takes only 20 minutes.
The topic of essay can be one of 3 possible types:
i. Argument topic: appears in exam in 75% cases
ii. Persuasion topic: appears in exam in 20% cases
iii. Narrative: appears in exam in 5% cases
Any essay you write on any topic must have structure – you receive (or lose ) points for
it. Structure means at least 4 paragraphs. First paragraph is introductory, the next two or
three is the actual essay – its body, and the last one for conclusion.
The first thing to do is to understand what kind of topic is before you.
Next:
 For argument – you need to explain both sides and agree with one of them
 For persuasion – you need to present another point of view and say which one you
agree with and why
 For narrative/discuss a problem – you need to explain it, discuss and offer solution and
discuss it too.
No matter what type of essay you are writing, you must provide some facts, evidence and
information. When you explain the problem – evaluate it; say when/where/who for it is
especially difficult. If you present an idea of solution – discuss it; say what its good and
bad sides are. Add examples from your own experience to support what you’re saying.
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2. Difference between an Argument and Persuasion topic:
Argument topic Persuasion topic
1.Question pattern: 1.Question pattern:
Most Argument topic will end with this Most Argument topic will end with this
line: Discuss both sides & what is line: To what extent do you agree or
your opinion?” disagree with this statement?”
Or
For instance: “Some people say that Is it a positive or negative development?
self employment is better than a job
in company or an institution. For instance: Societies ought to enforce
Discuss both sides & what is your capital punishment or Are there
opinion?” alternative forms of punishment that
would be better used. To what extent do
you agree or disagree with this
statement?”
2. Answering Argument topic: 2. Answering Argument topic:
Should be answered in 4 paragraphs: Should be answered in 4 paragraphs:
a) Introduction--- 1st para a) Introduction--- 1st para
b) Body---- 2nd & 3rd para b) Body---- 2nd & 3rd para
c) Conclusion---- 4th para c) Conclusion---- 4th para
A) Writing Introduction: A) Writing Introduction:
Never mention your opinion (the You must mention your opinion (the
argument/issue you are supporting) argument/issue you are supporting)
in the introduction/1st paragraph. in the introduction/1st paragraph.
B) Writing body: B) Writing body:
 2nd paragraph must contain the  2nd paragraph must contain the
argument you are not supporting argument you are supporting
 3rd paragraph must contain the  3rd paragraph must contain the
argument you are supporting argument you are not supporting
 Start 2nd paragraph with the  Start 2nd paragraph with the
sentence: On the one hand… sentence: To begin with/it is a fact
that……
 Start 3rd paragraph with the
sentence: On the other hand…  Start 3rd paragraph with the
sentence: However, there are
arguments against…..
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3. C) Writing Conclusion: C) Writing Conclusion:
Rules of Writing conclusion of Almost the same
Argument topic:
1. Summarize what was said before, do
not add new information.
2. Argument topic wants your opinion, &
conclusion is the part of your essay
where you MUST mention the side you
are taking. You must mention why you
are taking this side & also mention why
you aren't taking opposing side. While
doing this you should simply review
the main points (being careful not to
restate them exactly or repeat all your
examples) and briefly describe your
feelings about the topic. All the
conclusion needs is three or four strong
sentences, which do not need to follow
any set formula.
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4. Argument topic:
IELTS Essay plan:
Essay topic: Some people think that if women were to rule the
world, there would be less violence in it. Do you agree or
disagree with this statement?
Introduction paragraph
In the introduction you can first state that there are people who think that women have a
less violent nature than men and for this reason suggest that women would make the
world a less violent place if they were in power. Then you could mention that putting the
women in charge won't necessarily have that effect, because there are arguments for and
against.
First body paragraph
3 points against women in power
• Ruling the world takes some cruelty that women might not have
• Having more submissive nature than men, women can create even more violence
• Women are not decisive enough to enforce order and thus reduce violence
Second body paragraph
3 points in favor of women in power
• Women have less violent nature
• Women have less tolerance for violence
• Women are very concerned with making the world a safer place for the sake of the kids
Conclusion
State your personal opinion (let's assume that you're in favor of women in power), then
summarize what was said in the second paragraph.
SAMPLES OF ARGUMENT TOPICS:
SAMPLE 1:
Some countries require that school children are taught one foreign language, while
other countries do not require any foreign languages to be taught. Discuss the
advantages of both approaches and give your
opinion……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………
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5. Today, language is the most important tool for communication and relation between
people all around the word. Different countries have different languages and there are
more the 95 languages in the world. In some countries, school children do learn a foreign
language during their educational years. The advocates of this view argue that teaching
one foreign language is valuable for school going children. Others, however,
disagree believe that teaching foreign language at primary/secondary school
could have negative impact on school going children. So it is a matter of debate.
On the one hand, people in favor of not to teach any foreign language at children
schools argue that, students are overloaded with learning more than one language and
they will have problem for learning main subjects. In addition, the official languages of
their country get threatened by learning foreign language. For instance, now-a-days we
observe that our original language is getting mixed with foreign slangs and it is
considered as a big impediment to our literature.
On the other hand, some people argue that school children should be taught one
foreign language is better. Firstly, people generally believe that existence of an
international language in the world plays an essential role in research, relation and
communication. For example, when one searches a subject on the net, she or he must be
good at English, because most of the websites are in English. Secondly and more
importantly, for students who are going to study abroad, it is necessary to know other
language especially English. For example most of the universities require IELTS
certificate for enrollment. According to the survey of Iran Ministry of Education and
Training, 75% of successful students are bilingual. In addition, a student who knows an
international language is very comfortable in understanding when he or she participates at
an international seminar or conference. Lastly, in the overseas trips, knowing a foreign
language is necessary. For instance, one in the foreign country needs to communicate
with other people for accommodation, dining, and buying goods etc..
In conclusion, it is debatable whether learning one foreign language at school
is required or not, as both critics advocates seem to have plenty of arguments in
support of their views. In my opinion, teaching one foreign language at schools is
worthy. In spite of the fact that teaching just one language in school can preserve the
traditional culture and original language; considering the fact of international
communication, further education in other countries and overseas travels, I prefer learning
an additional foreign language at school.
N.B: Try to memorize those bold lines and use in every argument topics
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6. SAMPLES OF PERSUASION TOPICS:
SAMPLE 2:
Societies ought to enforce capital punishment or Are there alternative forms of
punishment that would be better used. To what extent do you agree or disagree with
this statement?”
Capital punishment is the killing of a criminal for a crime that he has committed.
Previously most countries employed this method of punishment but nowadays it is much
less widely used. People in favor of capital punishment argue that it is mandatory
for societies to stop crime, others, however disagree support alternative
punishments. I personally do believe that societies today should use capital
punishment.
To begin with, it seems to me if a criminal is killed for his or her crime, then
Society will feel better about it’s security. In spite of the fact that killing a dangerous
killer regrets the people, they assure they will not see such as this offence in future. The
last survey that has done by UCN in 2005 illustrates that families felt more social security
if an offender is killed regarding social principle rules. Secondly and more importantly,
when capital punishment is used for one, other criminals get threaten and they will not do
similar offence/crime. People generally believe that a criminal will never do the same
crime for which one was given death penalty. Last but not least, by using the rule of the
capital punishment for the crimes in the society so far will be reduced. For instance,
according to the statistics from Justice Ministry of Iran, because of executing one person
in 2007, 5% of crimes were reduced significantly. Consequently, we can see less crime
compared to the other times.
There are arguments against capital punishment. Many people feel it is Inhumane
- we shouldn't sink to the level of criminals. People can be wrongly convicted and
executed. If a man is in prison, he can be released if later proved not guilty. If he is dead,
there is nothing that can be done. There are alternative punishments available. For bad
crimes prison life sentences can be given with criminals imprisoned for the rest of their
lives. I can understand this point of view but I cannot agree with it.
All in all, from what has been discussed above, I firmly hold that societies ought
to enforce capital punishment for crimes such as killing a great number of people but for
particular case, using psychological hospitals, prisons and financial booking are the better
ways.
N.B: Try to memorize those bold lines and use in every persuasion topics
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7. Some people say that the Internet is making the world smaller by bringing people
together. To what extent do you agree that the internet is making it easier for people
to communicate with one another?
Nowadays internet is becoming very popular mean of communication. Right from school
children to old people, anybody can use internet as it is easy and efficient. Today,
nobody needs to write letter and post it, as internet has many options for instant
communication.
On one hand, there are number of advantages of internet communication. Firstly,
Internet has number of websites providing electronic mail (email)
facility. Email reaches to the recipient at the same time you send it. So it is way faster
than traditional postal mail or currier. Secondly, these websites also offer online chatting
facility wherein one can get instant response from person at the other end. Thirdly, one
can use webcam and have face to face interaction irrespective of where the other
person is around the globe.
On the other hand, there are number of disadvantages of internet communication.
Young generation today, is addicted to the use of internet. It is observed
that youngsters are wasting their time in chatting with their friends abroad. Hence they
have no time to talk to their parents or siblings. This has not only hindered the family
communication but also affected the mental health and studies of youngsters. Today,
because of social networking sites on internet youngsters are sharing their personal
information with strangers which I think may result in fatal fraud. In addition, all of us are
aware of the negative impact of porn sites on young generation.
In conclusion, internet is better option of communication, but it should be
used in proper way. Internet communication is definitely the best option. But it is up to
the users how to use it efficiently.
Appropriate style tone for both writing task 1,2
The following are the basic features of formal style:
• All verbs forms must be written in full: do not write contractions such as can’t, don’t,
etc.
• Do not use abbreviations such as info for information or ads for advertisements.
• Avoid using the active voice and the first person singular; in a formal letter you should
write: ‘A copy of the receipt will be forwarded to you as soon as possible’ instead of ‘I
will send you a copy of the receipt asap.’
• Avoid using informal intensifiers such as really, so, absolutely; use extremely, highly,
entirely, fully instead.
• Avoid using phrasal verbs which tend to be used in informal writing and conversation;
for example, use seek a job instead of look for a job; most phrasal verbs are idiomatic in
nature, that is, their meaning cannot usually be inferred from their individual parts.
• Avoid using informal discourse markers and link words such as besides or by the way
and use incidentally instead.
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8. • Do not use set phrases and idioms, for example, ‘I am not going to pay you a penny’
instead of ‘Your fee will not be paid.’
• Avoid ellipsis (leaving out words), for example, leaving out the subject I in ‘Hope to
hear from you soon.’
A more academic style will contain all of the features for formal style listed above. In
addition, you should do the following:
• Employ more tentative rather than assertive language by:
• using possibly and probably in front of verbs and noun phrases: ‘This is possibly caused
by...’ or ‘This is probably the most important factor.’
• using the modal verbs may and might ‘This may be the most important factor.’
• using appears to and seems to: ‘This appears to be the most important factor.’
• avoiding always and every, and replacing them with often and many much.
• Use formal vocabulary, for example, discuss rather than talk about.
• Use more formal grammar, for example by:
• Using There as a subject: ‘There is a serious risk of...’
• using It as a subject: ‘It is very difficult to...’
• Use an impersonal style by avoiding the use of personal pronouns, for example by:
• Using one as a subject: ‘One may ask whether...’ (One is a formal version of You)
• Using the passive voice: ‘Many things can be done to...’ to avoid using land we
• Avoid using rhetorical questions: ‘Smoking is dangerous. But is banning it such a good
idea after all?’
• Avoid the overuse or misuse of certain logical connectors, especially besides,
furthermore and moreover. Besides is informal, and both furthermore and moreover mean
that the following information is more important than the information before. Use In
addition or also instead.
DOs and DON'Ts:
 Make sure that you read all of the information in the questions very carefully
and respond appropriately.
 Make sure that you follow all instructions including the number of words
that you need to write.
 Make sure that you stop Writing Task 1 after 20 minutes to allow enough
time to answer Writing Task 2.
 Remember that Writing Task 2 carries more marks, so you need plenty of
time to answer it.
 Make sure that, for Task 1, you use figures or data from the question paper
accurately.
 Make sure that you plan your ideas before you begin to write. For Writing
Task1, stop to locate and select the most important pieces of information. For
Writing Task 2, take time to organise your ideas and argument.
 Be sure to provide supporting evidence for any of your claims or views in
Writing Task 2.
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9.  Leave time to check your answer for careless mistakes at the end. Try to
check for spelling mistakes, verb and subject agreement, singular/plural
nouns, tense mistakes and problems of fluency.
 Make sure that all of your ideas are relevant to the question.
 Try to avoid repeating the same words, phrases and ideas too often. Try to
use a range of vocabulary.
 Try to make sure that you do not repeat the same idea too often, make sure
you explore different ideas to provide a well-balanced response.
 Make sure you write as clearly as possible.
 Make sure that you produce organized and linked paragraphs and that the
style of your language is academic.
 Don't copy from other people’s work.
 Don't write less than the required number of words.
 Don't repeat task instructions in your writing.
 Don’t use note form or bullet points.
 Don’t leave out any required information.
 Don’t waste your time learning essays by heart to use in the exam. You will
be penalized for this and you will waste valuable time that could be spent
developing good writing skills.
 Don’t simply copy words and phrases from the question paper; try to use
your own words at all times by paraphrasing the question.
IELTS Writing: telling the difference between formal and informal
Many of you have asked me about the difference between formal and informal writing in
IELTS and this tells me that it’s a common problem. So here is what you need to know
about the styles of writing in IELTS.
If you are preparing for the Academic IELTS module, both Task 1 and Task 2 in the
Writing test are formal. For General Training candidates, Task 2 in Writing is always
formal, and Task 1 can be formal or informal.
As you know, Task 1 for GT module is a letter, and if the topic asks you to write to
someone you know, that is an informal letter – as opposed to writing to someone you
don’t know; which is formal.
The difference between formal and informal styles is mainly in the vocabulary. Informal
words are the ones used in everyday conversations and formal are used in books,
contracts, business letters and essays. If the task requires formal writing – avoid using
informal vocabulary. If the task requires informal writing, such as a letter to a friend,
avoid using formal ‘heavy’ words.
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10. Apart from the vocabulary in formal writing it is best to avoid words like “I”, “you”,
“we”, unless you are expressing an opinion. For example in an essay instead of writing
“You would find it difficult to get a job without proper qualifications”, write something
like “One would find it difficult to find a job without proper qualifications”, or you could
write “Finding a job without proper qualifications would be rather difficult”.
For those of you who don’t live in an English speaking country and don’t speak English
on daily basis it will be difficult to tell the difference between formal and informal
vocabulary, which is why I compiled this short list of words. You could memorize it and
use in your writing while practicing – this way the chances you will use the correct word
in the exam increase.
Formal Informal
Inform me Let me know
Cancel Drop
Contact Get in touch
Obtain Get
Apologise Say sorry
Postpone Delay
Request Ask for
Compensate Make up
Establish Set up
Discover Find out
Handle Deal with
Investigate Check up on
Tolerate Put up
Increase Go up
Children Kids
Many / Much A lot of
Many / Much Heaps of
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11. IELTS writing: using transitional phrases
Transitions
Transitional words and phrases are what gives your essays coherence, we need them to
join sentences and thoughts together. Look at the lists below. These are transitional
phrases that you can memorize and keep in your arsenal for the IELTS writing module.
AGREEMENT: also, plus, in addition, further, furthermore, moreover, additionally, to
add to that, next, in accordance with, accordingly, in agreement, finally, for instance, for
example, in exemplification, exemplifying that, in fact, factually speaking, in terms of,
and so forth, looking at the nexus between, in coordination with, along those lines,
collectively speaking, generally speaking, indeed, undoubtedly, obviously, to be sure.
CONTRAST: however, contrastingly, in contrast, on the contrary, on the other hand, To
put it into perspective, from a different angle, nonetheless, nevertheless, but, yet, a catch
to this is, sadly enough, as a hindrance, looking at the holdups, oddly enough, instead, in
direct opposition, still, and rather.
RESULT: as a result, as a consequence, consequently, thus, therefore, hence, thereby,
resulting in, ultimately, in the end, finally, in the overall analysis, in hindsight, in
retrospect, retrospectively, vicariously, the long term effect, as a short term result,
significantly, as a major effect, effectively, heretofore, hereafter, thereafter, in short,
generally, over all, concluding
4 ways to get in trouble with your IELTS Writing tasks
If you have an IELTS exam this weekend, this post can literally save your score. Many
people get
in trouble with their IELTS Writing for no reason, just because they don’t realize some things
are
not acceptable in IELTS letters, essays or reports. Here is a number of ways you can get in
trouble
with your IELTS writing tasks:
1. Using informal English in the IELTS Writing tasks.
Informal English is OK for your Speaking test – it is not OK for your Writing test. Even
though not
every informal word gets penalized, the more formal your style is, the better your score will
be. To
demonstrate the difference, informal expression “loads of / tons of” should be replaced with
“many”
or “much”; “fed up with” should be replaced with “lost his patience”, etc.
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12. 2. Using contractions.
Contractions are “it’s” instead of “it is”, “I’ve” instead of “I have”, “we’re” instead of “we
are”
(these are only a few examples). Contractions are a bad, bad thing to use in your essay, they
don’t
save you much time and can cost you marks. Do me a favor and forget about contractions in
your
IELTS writing. Write “should not” instead of “shouldn’t”, “could not” instead of “couldn’t”,
“would not” instead of “wouldn’t”. You get the idea.
3. Using slang.
You can use slang any time talking to your friends, but this is the only place where it belongs,
in a
conversation between friends. Keep it out of your IELTS essays, letters or reports. You can’t
write
“dunno” instead of “don’t know”, “wanna” instead of “want to” or “gonna” instead of “going
to”.
4. SMS-like spelling.
We all are typing SMS messages, chatting on Skype and the like, and there is a bunch of
shorter
ways to write longer words. We type “u” instead of “you”, “c” instead of “see”, “IMHO”
instead of
“in my humble opinion”. None of these can appear in your IELTS work, unless you are
specifically
trying to mess up and get a lower score than you deserve. You need to write the full word and
spell
it correctly, period.
I hope this post has caught you in time to prevent any of the above mistakes. Good luck with
your
exam!
IELTS Writing task# 1:
Rules of letter writing:
1 The Opening Greeting of the Letter
Your letter will probably need to be a reasonably informal letter to a friend or a semi-
formal letter. The opening of your letter should reflect which one you are writing.
A friendly letter will open with Dear followed by a name which should then be followed
by a comma, eg:
12

13. Dear John,
A semi-formal letter will also open with Dear and then be followed by a name, (if you
decide that in the situation you would know the name) or by Sir (if it's a man), Madam (if
it's a woman) or Sir/Madam if you don't know, eg:
Dear Mr. Phillips,
Dear Mrs. Phillips,
Dear Sir,
Dear Madam,
Dear Sir/Madam,
The question also might specify how you are to begin so follow what it says.
2 The Opening Paragraph of the Letter
In a semi-formal letter, I feel it is important to state the reason for the letter straight away.
You could use the following to help you:
I am writing to ask/ tell//inform you that...
I am writing to ask/inquire...
I am writing with regard to...
I am writing with reference to...
I am writing in connection with...
I am writing in response to...
In reply to your letter, I am writing to... (if the question indicates that you
have had a letter)
If the letter is a less formal one to a friend then you should open the letter in a friendlier
way. EG:
Dear John,
Hi there! It's been so long since I've heard from you. I hope you are doing well and I hope
all you family are doing fine. I'm pretty good in spite of working hard. Anyway, the
reason I'm writing is...
3 The Substance of the Letter
I've already gone into detail about answering the question fully and using your
imagination to produce a realistic letter fulfilling all functions so I won't repeat that.
Through great experience with IELTS, I can say that questions tend to ask you to do
certain things. Here I will give you some ideas about some language to use in the
substance of the letter which will help you to answer the task well.
Asking for Help
I would like you to...
I would be grateful if you could...
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14. I need to ask your advice about...
I'd like to ask for information about...
What I'm looking for is...
Complaining
I'm writing to express my dissatisfaction/annoyance/ about...
I'm writing to express my anger at...
I am not happy about...
... is not what I expected/was expecting.
I want to know what you are going to do about this situation.
NB When complaining, don't get too angry. I've had students who really became too
heated in their complaints. In a polite semi-formal letter, this should not happen. Also, do
not over-exaggerate. If it's a reasonably small and understandable problem, do say that
you're not satisfied but show that you understand and stay calm in your expressions.
Thanking
I'm very grateful for...
I'd like to thank you very much for...
I very much appreciated...
Apologizing
I'm very sorry that/about...
Please forgive me for...
I'd like to apologize about...
Please accept my apologies
4 Ending your Letter
First of all, in English we often end letters before the sign off with certain phrases. These
can be included in most letters and will make your letter seem realistic and polished. For
a formal letter, you could use:
If you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thanking you
in advance for your help, I look forward to hearing from you soon.
For a more informal letter you could use:
If you need to know anything else, just get in touch with me as soon as you can. Thanks a
lot for your help and I hope to hear from you soon.
Be careful though! IELTS examiners quite rightly look for writing that has been
memorised and just repeated so, if you use expressions like the ones above, make sure
that they fit in with the rest of your letter.
Finally you'll need to sign off your letter. For a formal letter use:
Yours faithfully, OR
Yours sincerely,
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15. Remember the commas (it makes a good impression on the examiner if you use good
punctuation) and spell sincerely correctly (a lot of people don't!).
For an informal letter, love is not always appropriate though English speakers use it a lot.
Better would be to use:
Regards,
Yours,
Best wishes,
Other Hints for the IELTS General Training Task 1 Writing
DON'T copy any part of the question in your answer. This is not your own work and
therefore will be disregarded by the examiner and deducted from the word count. You
can use individual words but be careful of using chunks of the question text.
Don't repeat yourself or the same ideas. This gives a bad impression and the examiner
realises that it isn't adding to the content of your letter.
If you are weak at English grammar, try to use short sentences. This allows you to control
the grammar and the meaning of your writing much more easily and contributes to a
better cohesion and coherence mark. It's much easier to make things clear in a foreign
language if you keep your sentences short!
Think about the tenses of your verbs. If you're writing about something that happened in
the past, your verbs will need to be in the past tenses. If you're arranging something in the
future, you will need to use the future tenses. If it's a habitual action, you'll need the
present simple tense and so on. If you have time, a quick check of your verbs at the end
of the exam can help you find errors.
As I just said, if you have finished the exam with time to spare, DON'T just sit there!!
Check what you have done. If you have time after the check, check again. And so on....
Don't be irrelevant. Although you can use your imagination to expand on your answer, if
any part of your letter is totally unrelated to the question and put in to just put up the
word count, then the examiner will not take it into account and deduct it from the word
count.
If you want to improve, there's no secret. Practice. Practice. Practice. You won't get better
sitting and doing nothing. Even good English users need practice for the IELTS exam. It
could make all the difference between your getting the band that you need, and getting
half a band less than you need and having to wait 3 months to do the exam again.
Finally, there are no correct answers or methods. Here I've given you some ideas to guide
you and hopefully to help you but the questions can be answered well in different ways.
Good luck!
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16. …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
IELTS Vocabulary: Writing a letter
s1~B. D ear Sir / M adam.~ s2~ A. T hank you for your letter.~s 3~C. I would li ke to c ompl ain about the ser vic e I rec ei ved at your hotel rec entl y.~s 4~C. As you r equested, I encl ose my c urricul um vitae.~s 5~A. I woul d be grateful if you would s end me mor e infor mation.~s 6~C. l look forward to hearing fr om you s oon.~s 7~A. T hank you for your attention i n this matter.~s 8~C. r efer to your or der of 12 J anuar y.~s 9~B. If you would li ke any more infor mation, pl eas e do not hesitate to contact me.~s10~B. Yours si nc erel y.~s 11~A. Yours faithfull y.
s1~B. D ear Sir / M adam~s 2~A. T hank you for your letter .~s3~C. I would li ke to complai n about the s er vic e I rec ei ved at your hotel rec entl y.~s 4~C. As you req uested, I enclos e my c urriculum vitae.~s5~ A. I woul d be grateful if you woul d s end me more infor mation.~s 6~C. l l ook forwar d to heari ng from you s oon.~s7~ A. T hank you for your attenti on i n this matter.~ s8~C. refer to your order of 12 Januar y.~s9~ B. If you woul d li ke any mor e infor mation, pl ease do not hesitate to c ontac t me.~s 10~ B. Yours sinc erel y.~s11~A. Yours faithfull y.
s12~ a. Fals e. For mal letters s hould be as brief and to the point as possi ble~s 13~a. F alse.~s14~a. F alse.~s15~a. F alse. It is not necessar y to include your name~s 16~ a. Tr ue (In s ome countries , writing abbr eviated dates c oul d be c onfusi ng. In Britain, 1/4/00 is the 1 April. In the USA i t is the 4 J anuar y).~s 17~ a. Tr ue.~s18~ a. F als e. ( A letter whic h is not br oken i nto par agraphs can be diffic ult and confusing to read. You s houl d have at least thr ee par agraphs: Paragraph 1: explai ning why you are writi ng. Par agraph 2+: details. Fi nal paragraph: acti on to be taken - e.g., 'I look for ward to hearing fr om you soon')
s12~ a. .......................................................................~s 13~ a. .......................................................................~s14~ a. .......................................................................~s15~a. .......................................................................~ s16~a. .......................................................................~s 17~a. .......................................................................~s18~ a. .......................................................................
A. Below, you will see eleven common situations that people encounter when they are writing a
formal letter. Choose the sentence or phrase (A, B or C) that would be most appropriate in each
situation.
1. You are writing a letter to the headteacher of a school or college, but you don't know their
name. How do you begin your letter?
A. Dear headteacher.
B. Dear Sir / Madam.
C. Dear Sir.
2. You have received a letter from the manager of a company which buys computer components
from your company, and you are now replying. What do you say?
A. Thank you for your letter.
B. Thanks a lot for your letter.
C. It was great to hear from you.
3. You recently stayed in a hotel and were very unhappy with the service you received. You are
now writing to the manager. What do you say?
A. I had a horrible time at your hotel recently.
B. I would like to say that I am unhappy about your hotel.
C. I would like to complain about the service I received at your hotel recently.
4. You have sent a letter of application to a college, together with your curriculum vitae which the
college requested. What do you say in the letter to explain that your curriculum vitae is attached?
A. You asked for my curriculum vitae, so here it is.
B. As you can see, I've enclosed my curriculum vitae.
C. As you requested, I enclose my curriculum vitae.
5. You have applied for a job, but you would like the company to send you more information.
What do you say?
A. I would be grateful if you would send me more information.
B. I want you to send me more information.
C. Send me some more information, if you don't mind.
6. In a letter you have written to a company, you tell them that you expect them to reply. What do
you say?
A. Write back to me soon, please.
B. Please drop me a line soon.
C. l look forward to hearing from you soon.
7. In a letter you have written, you want the recipient to do something and are thanking them in
advance of their action. What do you say?
A. Thank you for your attention in this matter.
B. Thanks for doing something about it.
C. I am gratified that you will take appropriate action.
8. The company you work for has received an order from another company and you are writing to
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17. them to acknowledge the order and let them know when you can deliver. What do you say?
A. About the order you sent on 12 January for...
B. I would like to remind you of the order you sent on 12 January for...
C. refer to your order of 12 January.
9. In a letter, you explain that the recipient can contact you if they want more information. What
do you say?
A. Give me a call if you want some more information.
B. If you would like any more information, please do not hesitate to contact me.
C. If you would like any more information, why not get in touch?
10. You began a letter with the recipient's name (e.g., Dear Mr. Perrin). How do you end the
letter?
A. Yours faithfully.
B. Yours sincerely.
C. Best wishes.
11. You did not begin the letter with the recipient's name (see number 1 above). How do you end
the letter?
A. Yours faithfully.
B. Yours sincerely.
C. Best wishes.
B. Look at these sentences and decide if they are true or false.
1. Formal letters are always longer than informal letters.
a. False. Formal letters should be as brief and to the point as possible
2. In a formal letter it is acceptable to use colloquial English, slang and idioms.
a. False.
3. In a formal letter it is acceptable to use contractions (e.g., I've instead of I have).
a. False.
4. In a formal letter you should include your name and address at the top of the page.
a. False. It is not necessary to include your name
5. In a formal letter, you should always write the date in full (e.g., 1 April 2000 and not 1/4/00).
a. True (In some countries, writing abbreviated dates could be confusing. In Britain, 1/4/00 is the
1 April. In the USA it is the 4 January).
6. In a formal letter, you should always put your full name (e.g., James Harcourt and not J.
Harcourt) after your signature at the bottom of the letter..
a. True.
7. Formal letters do not need to be broken into paragraphs. It is acceptable to write them as one
continuous paragraph.
a. False. (A letter which is not broken into paragraphs can be difficult and confusing to read. You
should have at least three paragraphs: Paragraph 1: explaining why you are writing. Paragraph
2+: details. Final paragraph: action to be taken - e.g., 'I look forward to hearing from you soon')
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18. SAMPLE OF WRITING TASK 1:
1. Writing task 1 (a letter): Complaint letter:
Write a letter to a restaurant manager complaining about the food and the service during your
recent visit,
When you dined in with your family on a special occasion. In your letter:
- Describe the problems that you had,
- Say what were the consequences of these problems,
- Specify an action you would like the manager to take
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am one of your customers bearing the customer number: 546. I am writing this
letter to complain about the food and the service during my anniversary that was held in
your restaurant on November, 16th.
As you know, last week, I reserved the restaurant for my 8th anniversary and I
invited about 50 persons. Unfortunately, not only the quality of the food was poor but
also the service of the staff was unsatisfactory. The numbers of waiter and waitress were
not sufficient for serving food and we had to wait a long time to get the service. In
addition, some dishes (food) were stale 3 persons of my relatives got sick from that
stale unhygienic food, immediately after returning home. These circumstances
had caused enough troubles for me.
Bearing the above circumstances in mind, I would be grateful if you refund
50% of my payment. In addition, I would like to opine that being a restaurant
manager; you should be more cautious about the service and quality of food your
restaurant is providing to customers.
I am looking forward to receiving appropriate response from you.
Faithfully yours,
………………….
=============================================
2. Writing Task 1 (a letter): personal letter+ ask for apology
You were looking after your friend’s house while he was out of the country. Accidentally, you
broke
something in the house. Write a letter to your friend. In your letter
- Apolozise describe what happened ,
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19. - describe the damage,
- explain how you are planning to compensate your friend.
Dear Roger,
I hope you have a safe journey and all things are going well for you. I am writing
this letter to express my apology for the incident that occurred by me accidentally.
The last day before your coming back, when was working with your computer, I
installed the Office 2003 in your PC. After installation the program, when I was
ejecting DVD from the DVD-ROM, I accidentally broke the DVD that contained a
software collection. I know you use that frequently for your job. So, I have bought a new
software collection same as yours.
I would be grateful if you could give me your address so that I can send the
DVD to you via any express courier services. Otherwise, you can buy a new DVD
and inform me the price. I am able to send you the cost of DVD either by credit card
or by cheque.
Once again please accept my apology for the inconvenience. I would be
grateful if you kindly consider my proposal for compensation. Looking forward to
hearing from you soon.
Best wishes,
………………….
=====================================
3. Writing Task 1 (a letter): job application letter:
You read a job advertisement for the Children’s Care association. They need volunteers (to work
without
pay). Write a letter to the organization and say
- Why you think you fit that job,
- What interests you in this job,
- How soon you are available to join
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am a manager of the P.S.P Nursery Center. I am writing this letter to inform you
that I am apt for the position “Child care coordinator” that you advertised on your
website.
As a nursery manager, I have more than 10 years experience in working with
children. Not only I have got four international certificates related to Children’s Care, but
also I am qualified as a supervisor in tree Children Health Institution. Since I am
financially solvent, I do not need any salary for my service. In addition, I had a
fascination to work with a charity organization.
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20. I would be grateful if you could set up an appointment for an interview. By the
way, I am ready to attend my job in the first week of December. For your convenience,
I would like to add my contact address:
Name: Mr. X****
Address: Dhaka, Bangladesh…
Contact number: +880169183136
Please find attached my detailed resume, educational certificates, employer
reference letters etc.
Once again, please kindly consider my application. I am looking forward to
receiving your response.
Faithfully yours,
……………..
****
You can write Mr. X as your name. Your real/fake address, contact number can be used
when you ought to include your contact address/information in the body of a letter.
Other task 1 Examples where contact address should be mentioned:
If a letter wants you to write about your lost suitcase/something to a hotel manager ……
………………………………………………………………………………………………
Source:
 IELTS CUBE (the way to study),
 Kaplan IELTS,
 Barrons
 Website: IELTS blog
Regards:
Dr.Hasib
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