Formal Letters & Emails
Formal Letters & Emails
French formal correspondence follows very fixed opening and closing formulas, far more rigid than typical English business-letter conventions — learning the set phrases matters more here than generating original sentences.
Grammar Comparison
Grammar Comparison
Madame/Monsieur openings and veuillez agréer... closings
Madame, Monsieur, ... Veuillez agréer, Madame, Monsieur, l'expression de mes salutations distinguées.
Dear Sir or Madam, ... Yours faithfully.
English formal letters allow reasonable variation ('Dear Sir/Madam', 'Yours sincerely/faithfully') and are comparatively short. French formal closings, by contrast, are long, formulaic sentences that must echo the exact address term used in the opening (if you opened with Madame, Monsieur, your closing repeats Madame, Monsieur exactly). Deviating from the set phrases in French reads as careless rather than creative, unlike in English, where some personalization in a formal closing is normal and even expected.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Madame, Monsieur, | mah-DAHM muh-SYUR | Dear Sir or Madam, |
| veuillez agréer | vuh-YAY ah-gray-AY | please accept |
| l'expression de mes salutations distinguées | lex-preh-see-OHN duh may sah-lu-tah-see-OHN dees-tan-GAY | the expression of my distinguished greetings (closing formula) |
| je vous prie de | zhuh voo pree duh | I ask you to (formal) |
| dans l'attente de votre réponse | dahn lah-TAHNT duh voh-truh ray-POHNS | awaiting your reply |
| cordialement | kor-dee-ahl-MAHN | best regards (semi-formal) |
| ci-joint | see-ZHWAN | attached/enclosed |
| un objet | uhn ob-ZHEH | a subject line |
| suite à | sweet ah | further to / following |
| en réponse à | ahn ray-POHNS ah | in response to |
| vous trouverez ci-dessous | voo troo-vuh-RAY see-duh-SOO | you will find below |
| je me permets de | zhuh muh pair-MEH duh | I take the liberty of |