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Informal Letter

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Last updated date: 22nd Mar 2024
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Introduction

An informal letter is a letter that is written in a casual manner. You can write them to cousins, relatives, friends or family. An informal letter can be written even to your formal contacts if you share a friendly relationship with them. There are different ways to carry out this type of letter writing depending on which country you're in. This article will address the English/American way.

 

We'll Discuss the Following Elements

  1. Address

  2. Date

  3. Opening

  4. Body

  5. Closing

  6. Signature


Contents of Informal Letter

1. Address 

Your personal address is the first thing you write in your letter. It should be placed at the top right corner of the page. This address is important if the receiver wants to write back to you. Always remember to write your postal code and if you are writing the letter abroad then do include the country name as well.

 

2. Format

Number and street name

City, state and postal code

Country

Example

6b, Elegant Heights, Indira Nagar

Kadavanthra, Kochi- 682020

Kerala

India

 

2. Date 

The date is usually mentioned below your sender's address. The most common format to write the date includes the month, day and year. The name of the month is capitalized in the date.

  

Format- DD/MM/YEAR

 

In British English, it is written as-  22nd November 2011 or 22 November 2011 or 22/11/2011

 

In American English, It is written as-  November 22nd, 2011 or November 22, 2011, or 11/22/2011

 

3. Opening

As assumed, the letter has to be preceded by greetings. It is explained below on how to greet someone when it comes to informal letters. 

 

This is fairly very casual and is usually not as strict and important as it would be with a business or formal letter. There are still a few points that you should know while addressing or greeting someone in informal letters. 

 

Mr Johnson (British English)

 

Mr Johnson (American English)

 

You can write the title only if the letter is semi-formal or you wish to show respect to an elder.

 

If you are on very friendly terms, just use their first name. The way in which you greet your reader is up to you. The examples below showcase some common greetings.

 

Dear Shrey,

 

Shrey,

 

Hi Shrey,`

 

Remember to put a comma after the name. 

 

4. Body

As it is an informal letter you can start in a casual and friendly way. However, it's of importance to weigh your language in accordance with the person you are writing to. The best way of assessing how you should write is to think about how you would interact with the person you are writing to in real life. 

 

Subjects to Include in the Body

  • Give your reason for writing.

  • Explain briefly the main reason in the first paragraph.

  • Ask about the person you are writing to.

  • Make some concluding remarks.

  • Invite the person to write back.


5. Closing

The closing paragraph should include the sentence in the last few things you would like to tell the reader. Here are certain examples of closing sentences-

 

Examples of Closing Sentences

  • I am looking forward to seeing you.

  • I can't wait to see you soon.

  • I can't wait to hear from you.

  • I am looking forward to hearing from you soon.

  • I hope to hear from you soon.

  • See you soon.

  • Send my love to...

  • I hope you are doing well.

  • Give my regards to…


6. Signature

You can sign off by saying anything of your choice as it's an informal letter yet here are certain examples you can use. You just have to write your name after these. 

 

Examples of Signatures

  • Best wishes,

  • Best,

  • Kindly

  • Kind regards,

  • Best regards,

  •  Love,


Examples of an Informal Letter

52, Fig street, Indira Nagar

 

Kadavanthra

 

Kochi

 

Kerala

 

11th August 2020

 

Dear Mill,

Hope you are safe and well protected from the outbreak of the Virus. It’s been a long time since I wrote to you. Due to the pandemic, I am working from home, So I decided to write to you and know how you have been doing.

 

Everything is fine here in India and we all stay indoors most of the time as India has growing numbers of active cases of COVID 19. We have reached number three in the world for the active number of cases. It is pretty mundane staying inside all the time but I have stopped complaining and started reading books.  It is actually the best way to utilize time. 

 

How did you manage to complete your exams between pandemic? My sister just had a baby girl and I am babysitting for her. Once this Pandemic is over I will come and see you.

 

Hope to hear from you soon.

 

Love

 

Sandra

 

The difference between a formal and informal letter

Formal and informal letters have a similar overall structure in the sense that both include addresses, dates, an opening, body content, a closing sentence, and a signature. However, there are some key differences in formal letters and informal letters, which are as follows:


  • Language

Formal letters use more formal and dignified language, whereas informal letters use more casual and simple language.


  • Tone

Formal letters tend to use a more neutral tone because objectivity is important in formal letters. However, informal letters use a more open and emotional tone.


  • Reason for Writing

The biggest difference between formal and informal letters is the reason for writing the letter. Formal letters are written in an official capacity with an official reason. Informal letters, on the other hand, are written for any reason and are written from a personal space rather than an official capacity.

FAQs on Informal Letter

1. What is an informal letter?

An informal letter is a type of letter written to people who you are already close to. It follows the basic conventions of letter-writing, but the tone and language used are more informal and friendly. While informal letters are not used as much in today's day and age, there are still plenty of people who prefer the more personal touch of a physical letter rather than a text message or email. Informal letters can be exchanged between friends, siblings, and other close family members.

2. What is the structure of an informal letter?

An informal letter typically consists of six parts. The first part is the Address. At the very top of the letter, you have to write out your address (that is, the sender's address). After that comes the date and receiver's address. The date is usually mentioned after the sender's address in the format DD/MM/YYYY, that is date/month/year. Then comes the receiver's address. Both sets of addresses need to be written in the following format:


Flat number and street name


City, state, postal code


Country

After the above mentioned things have been written comes the actual letter. You have to start the letter with an opening, usually in the form of "Dear So-and-so," and an introductory sentence explaining the purpose of writing the letter below the greeting. In the body of the letter you can elaborate on the purpose of writing the letter and provide more details. There are no strict rules for this section, but slang should be avoided. Finally, in the last part of the letter, there is the closing sentence, which ends the letter. In this sentence, you can explain that you would like to get a response back from the receiver. The end of the letter includes a signature, in which you write "Best Wishes" or any equivalent phrase and then sign your name below that.

3. When are you supposed to write an informal letter?

An informal letter is written for any number of reasons. The main thing to remember is that formal letters are usually written in some official capacity, while informal letters have no official reasons behind them. For example, let's say that you are part of a student council and you want to write a letter to the principal of your school requesting the use of a classroom for a meeting. That would be a formal occasion, because you're writing in your capacity as a member of the student council to the principal for a formal request. However, if you're writing to a close friend to invite her/him to your birthday party, that would be an informal letter. This is because there is no official reason behind writing the letter; you are simply writing to a friend and asking her/him to come for your birthday.

4. How to write an informal letter?

Writing an informal letter is much easier than writing a formal letter, however, there are still a few things to keep in mind. The first thing to remember is to follow the format given on this page and make sure that the date and addresses are correctly written. For the body of the letter there are no set rules. However, slang and mixing languages should be avoided. If you're writing a letter in English, stick to English for the whole letter. Do not use words or contractions that are not officially recognised by a dictionary. For example, don't write "I was gonna tell you something important." Instead, write "I was going to tell you something important."

5. Where can I find more resources for informal letter writing?

You can find more resources to teach you informal letter writing on Vedantu. If you're browsing on a mobile phone, you can download the Vedantu app to easily find and download resources. Just use the search bar to find study materials for English letter writing. If there are any materials that can be downloaded, you will need to create a Vedantu account before you begin downloading. Apart from using the resources available on Vedantu, you can practise informal letter writing by writing informal letters on different topics. For example, you can write one letter inviting a friend for a birthday party, another telling your cousin about the high grades you got in a test, another letter telling your grandmother about an event you attended, and so on. This will help you hone your letter-writing skills.

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