You already know how important it is to speak good English in an international working environment. If you work for a company which does business abroad, you probably read and write a lot of English, too. Writing, just like speaking, is communication. In our letters and emails we need to express many things: authority, gratitude, dissatisfaction, etc. Expressing ourselves well and with the correct level of formality is a skill.

Do you have that skill? Ask yourself these questions:
Do you present yourself in a professional manner when you write? What image do you give to the people who read your letters and emails?

In short, you want to give a professional image when you write to your customers and business partners. To get you started, we've prepared some lists of standard phrases. Take a look at:
1/ Opening Lines
2/ Closing Lines
3/ Dear Sir and Yours Faithfully

Opening lines
Why do we need an opening line in a business letter or formal email?- to make reference to previous correspondence- to say how you found the recipient's name/address - to say why you are writing to the recipient.

10 Good Opening Lines:

With reference to your letter of 8 June, I ...
I am writing to enquire about ...
After having seen your advertisement in ... , I would like ...
After having received your address from ... , I ...
I received your address from ... and would like ...
We/I recently wrote to you about ...
Thank you for your letter of 8 May.
Thank you for your letter regarding ...
Thank you for your letter/e-mail about ...
In reply to your letter of 8 May, ...

Closing lines:

Why do we need a closing line in a business letter or email?

- to make a reference to a future event.

- to repeat an apology.

- to offer help.

10 Good Closing Lines:

- If you require any further information, feel free to contact me.
- I look forward to your reply.
- I look forward to hearing from you.
- I look forward to seeing you.
- Please advise as necessary.
- We look forward to a successful working relationship in the future.
- Should you need any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.
- Once again, I apologise for any inconvenience.
- We hope that we may continue to rely on your valued custom.
- I would appreciate your immediate attention to this matter.

When 'Yours faithfully' and when 'Yours sincerely' in a business letter?

When the recipient's name is unknown to you:
Dear Sir ... Yours faithfully
Dear Madam ... Yours faithfully
Dear Sir or Madam ... Yours faithfully

When you know the recipient's name:
Dear Mr Hanson ... Yours sincerely
Dear Mrs Hanson ... Yours sincerely
Dear Miss Hanson ... Yours sincerely
Dear Ms Hanson ... Yours sincerely

When addressing a good friend or colleague:
Dear Jack ... Best wishes / Best regards

Addressing whole departments:
Dear Sirs ... Yours faithfully

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Colour Idioms

black and white thinking of everything or judging everything in a simple way and seeing it as either good or bad
♪ The situation isn't as black and white as it seems; it's much more complicated.
black out to darken by putting out the electric lights or covering over the windows
♪ Londoners had to black out their windows during the war so that the enemy aircraft could not see the city.

black out to lose consciousness
♪ He blacked out after standing up for three hours in the parade. First aid staff attended to him.

blue in the face to be very angry or upset; to be excited and very emotional
♪ She argued with her husband until she was blue in the face but he wouldn't see her point of view.

green to be inexperienced and/or immature
♪ He's a bit green - he still believes that someone is going to come and help him out of his situation. He doesn't realise he has to do it himself.

the grass is always greener (on the other side) when a place that is far away or different seems better than the place where we are now
♪ He must be crazy to leave the company; he's got a great job and a great salary. He really should stay where he is but he can't see it - the grass is always greener on the other side.

green with envy to be very jealous and full of envy
♪ I was green with envy when I heard that she was going on holiday to Spain for a week while I had to stay and work.

in the red to have debts
♪ The company has been in the red for two years now. We now owe over $500,000 to our suppliers and the bank.

red tape excessive bureaucracy
♪ Many businesses complain about the amount of red tape that they must deal with in former Eastern-bloc countries.

out of the blue when something happens without a warning, by surprise
♪ His decision to leave the company came completely out of the blue. No one expected it at all.

Read more "Colour Idioms"

a/c - account
attn. - (for the) attention (of)
B/E - bill of exchange
B/L - bill of lading
CC - carbon copy
CF. - compare (Latin: confer)
CFR. - cost and freight
CIF - cost, insurance, freight
CIP - carriage and insurance paid to
C/N - credit note
C/O - care of
COD - cash on delivery
Corp. - Corporation
CPT - carriage paid to
CWO - cash with order
D/A - documents against acceptance
DDP - delivery duty paid
DDU - delivery duty unpaid
DES - delivered ex ship
DN - debit note
D/P - documents against payment
enc(s) - enclosure(s)
EXW - ex works
FOB - free on board
FOR - free on rail
Inc - Incorporated (US)
L/C - letter of credit
Ltd - limited
P&P - postage and packing
p.p. - on behalf of
PTO - please turn over
RE - with reference to, regarding
RRP - recommended retail price
SAE - stamped addresses envelope
VAT - Value Added Tax
ZIP (code) - zone of improved delivery (US)

Read more "Business English Abbreviations"

Business Grammar, Style & Usage
Alicia Abell
Aspatore Books | 140 pages | CHM | 0.9 MB

Based on the actual writing and speaking styles of leading business executives worldwide, this book features easy-to-follow instructions and techniques for preparing polished written documents and writing and speaking in an articulate manner. Focusing on how leading business professionals really communicate, the basics of writing and speaking, including traditional grammar and speaking dos and don'ts, are covered. Examined are the particular styles in which business professionals communicate with each other and how to develop a personal professional style. Featured are special sections on writing memos, offer letters, e-mails, and other business documents that business professionals need to master.

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Business Communication Games
Angela Lloyd, Anne Preier
Oxford University Press | 128 pages | PDF | 6 MB

Photocopiable games and activities for students of English for business.
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Teach Yourself Grammar and Style in 24 Hours
Pamela Rice Hahn, Ph.D. Dennis E. Hensley
Alpha | 448 Pages | PDF | 1.2 MB

Adults often begin writing and realized that they don't remember all the rules they learned in Mrs. Peacock's 8th grade English class. Most adults in the workplace today have purchased -- on at least one occasion -- a writing guide. Grammar, style, punctuation, sentence structure and irregular verbs are all elements of grammar and style that we often just don't know anymore. And for anyone who has to communicate professionally -- whether a formal business presentation or a general improvement in their everyday conversational ability -- has gone to the bookstore to look for a grammar and style guide. Teach Yourself Grammar and Style in 24 Hours is a straightforward guide to everything from basic nouns and verbs to expressing clear thought in writing. Based on the proven Teach Yourself formula, the authors will construct 24 1-hour lessons on grammar and style that build sequentially. Since grammar and style work together, readers can see how one chapter affects the next as they progress. Best of all -- at $17.99, readers can purchase one all inclusive grammar and style book for more coverage and a better price.
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There are two cases of inversion:

1) Inversion may be required by the grammatical structure of a given type of the sentence. Thus, in interrogative sentence, the finite verb must, as a rule, precede the subject:

Eg: Is she a student of your department?

Have they come yet?

The same word order is obligatory for a subordinate clause of unreal condition when the conjunction “IF” is omitted:

Eg: Had we time, we should readily go with you.

Were she not so busy, she would help us.

2) Inversion may be the result of emphasis. When some word in the sentence is put in prominent position to make it emphatic, the structure of the sentence may require an inverted order of subject and predicative verb:

Eg: Never has she sung beautifully.

Out rushed the children.

An inverted order of subject and predicative verb takes place in the following cases:

1- In questions, except an interrogative word (who, whose, which, what, how, etc.) is the subject of the sentence or modifies the subject.

Eg: Has the road been opened to the public?

How did you manage to do that hard task?

But: Who teaches English here? How many of you are going to start next week?

2- In sentences expressing Wish and Concession (nhượng bộ):

Eg: Long live the Vietnamese Nation!

So be it!

3- In the Imperative Mood if there is a subject expressed by a pronoun in set phrases – survival of the old word order:

Eg: Mind you what I say. Don’t you forget to do that.

4- In Conditional Clause if the conjunction is omitted, but only when the predicate contains an auxiliary or modal verb, or when the verb to be and to have are used as predicates:

Eg: Should my friend call, kindly tell him to wait for me.

Had I seen the car earlier, I should have warned her.

Had he more time, he would go with them.

5- When Auxiliary Verb or Modal Verb is repeated to apply a preceding statement to a new subject. Affirmative sentences open with ‘So’ , negative sentences open with ‘Neither’, ‘Nor’, ‘No More’:

Eg: A says: I have finished my work. à B says: So have I.

He got up at six thirty. So did everybody in the room.

He didn’t do his homework. Neither did she.

I am not pleased with his work. No more am I.

6- When the sentences begin with the following words: here, there, now, then, but only if the subject is a noun. If the subject is a personal pronoun, no inversion takes place.

Eg: Here are a few funny stories.

There goes the last train. We have missed it.

Now come the end of our lesson today.

But: Here they are. There she comes.

7- If a long adverbial expression, especially preposition one, opens the sentence; but only if the subject group is lengthy:

Eg: Through the open windows came the roaring sound of the big factory.

In the center of the room, under the chandelier, stood the head of the family to host that big party.

8- Often with the verb to say, to answer, to ask, etc. except when the verb is in an analytical form or followed by an object denoting the person addressed:

Eg: “Where do you come from?”, asked he.

“If you do not hurry, we will miss our train,” said Mrs. Bailey to her friend.

9- If an adverb, a conjunction, or an emphatic particle with a negative or restrictive meaning begins the sentence: hardly, little, neither, nor, no sooner…than, not only, scarcely…when, etc. :

Eg: Nowhere was the life so hard and terrible as that east-end mountain.

Never before have they suffered such a serious discrimination.

No sooner had she got onto the compartment than the light went out.

Seldom have I seen such wonderful flowers.

Little did she know the true meaning of love.

Only then did they realize that they had been in the big trap.

Hardly did I think it possible.

10- If the predicate begins the sentence, the inversion is used though sometimes the normal word order remains:

Eg: Fine and sunny was the morning when we started our journey.

Clearly and loudly did he speak that everybody could hear him.

11- If an emphasized “So” preceding an adverbial modifier, or an emphasized “Thus” is put at the head of the sentence:

Eg: So rapidly did she gain confidence that she could have her own keys to the house.

Thus was the country plundered by the invaders.

He was so good a man.

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