St Kabir Public School, Sector 26, Chandigarh

Letter of Complaint
The type of complaint letter you write on your own individual level pertaining to your
individual grievances is referred to as personal complaint letter.

Professional Complaint letter- It is that type of complaint letter that is written on behalf of
the organisation pertaining to issues that are affecting the organisation as a whole.

Topics for writing a Complaint Letter

 Incomplete or defective order

 Abnormal delay in sending the consignment
 The goods arrive in a damaged condition
 The goods are different from what were ordered
 Quantity of goods is not what was ordered
 Goods are delivered at the wrong address
 Work undertaken is done unsatisfactorily
 Misbehaviour of staff or salesman
 Mistake in preparing the invoice
 Defective packing that might lead to the damage of goods in transit
 Mistakes in a bill or reminders for payment after the bill has been paid, etc
 Wrong-doing in public.

Format of a Complaint Letter

 SENDER’S ADDRESS- The sender’s address is usually put on the top left-hand
corner of the page.
 DATE- The sender’s address is followed by the date just below it, i.e. on the left side
of the page. This is the date on which the letter is being written. It is to be written in
expanded form.
 RECEIVER’s ADDRESS- Make sure you write the title/name/position of the
receiving official, as the first line of the address.
 SALUTATION- This is where you greet the person you are addressing the letter to.
Bear in mind that it is a formal letter, so the greeting must be respectful and not too
personal. The general greetings used in formal letters are “Sir” or “Madam”.
 SUBJECT- Then we sum up the purpose of writing the letter in one line. This helps
the receiver focus on the subject of the letter in one glance. It is important to underline
the subject.
 BODY- This is the main content of the letter. It is either divided into three paragraphs
or two paragraphs if the letter is brief. The tone of the content should be formal. Do
Worksheets/Resource sheet/Term II October-November/ English Language/ Class VIII/ 2019-20 1
 not use any offensive language. Another point to be kept in mind is that the letter
should be concise and to the point. And always be respectful and considerate in your
language. It should include-

 Short introduction paragraph- Provide details about the product or service that is the
subject of the complaint. Include dates, location and the specifications about the item
or service.
 State the issue with item or service. Provide details as to the cause. This may include
malfunction, billing issues, details that were not disclosed, etc.
 Indicate how you would like them to resolve your problem. Provide specifics about
what you’re seeking.
 Indicate you are including copies of transaction document.
 Indicate you look forward to their reply within a specific time period.
 Indicate that they can contact you about the issue and provide your contact detail
 COMPLIMENTARY CLOSE- At the end of your letter, we write a complimentary
closing. The words “Yours faithfully” or “Yours sincerely” are used.
 SIGNATURE- Here finally you sign your name. And then write your name in block
letters beneath the signature followed by your designation. This is how the recipient
will know who is sending the letter.

Tips for writing a Complaint Letter

Although the motive of complaint letter is to vent out your grievance and frustration, it is
imperative that you use a tone which is polite and simple. Try to be formal and avoid using
offensive and disrespectful words.

 Make sure that you introduce yourself properly.

 The purpose of writing should be loud and clear.
 Do not deviate from the topic and write to-the-point.
 Make sure you adhere to the format as it carries marks. (Content: 4 Expression:4
Format: 2)
 Make sure you double check for grammatical accuracy and spellings. They carry
marks.
 Leave adequate number of lines between paragraphs to make it look clean.
 Presentation is very important.

QUESTION 1: Write a letter to M/s. Oxford Publishing House, London complaining that the
books sent by them were not those you had ordered for. Ask for a replacement. You are
Varun /Varuna Joshi, Sector-20, Chandigarh.

Examination Hall
Sector-20, Chandigarh.
Worksheets/Resource sheet/Term II October-November/ English Language/ Class VIII/ 2019-20 2
20 th February 2019.

M/s. Oxford Publishing House

Consumer Complaint Division
London.

Subject- Complaint regarding receipt of wrong set of books.

Dear Sir/Madam,

On February 1, 2019, I bought a book set (Order No. 000154) to be delivered to Sector-20,
Chandigarh.

To my dismay, I have not received the set I ordered and have instead, received the wrong set
of books. I am very disappointed.

To resolve the problem, I would appreciate it if you could replace the wrong set of books
with the one originally ordered. Please let me know as soon as possible what action you
propose to take. I look forward to hearing from you within the next ten days.

Enclosed are copies of the transaction document and the receipt.

I look forward to your reply and a resolution to my problem and will wait until the
aforementioned date before seeking help from a consumer protection cell or the Better
Business Bureau. Please contact me at the above address or by phone at 098100XXXXX.

Yours sincerely,

Varun/Varuna Joshi

Enclosure(s)- Copy of receipt and transaction docs.

QUESTION 2: You are Sanjeet/ Sanjana of 122, Arjun Nagar, New Delhi. A number of
scooters and cars are parked in your locality in a haphazard manner, causing a road blockade.
Write a letter to the local secretary of the Resident’s Association complaining against this
problem.

122, Arjun Nagar

New Delhi.

20th February 2019.

The Secretary
Resident’s Association

Worksheets/Resource sheet/Term II October-November/ English Language/ Class VIII/ 2019-20 3

New Delhi.

Subject- Complaint regarding the issue of bad parking habits in the locality.

Dear Sir,
I would like to draw your attention to the poor parking habits of residents in our locality
(Arjun Nagar, New Delhi). It causes a lot of chaos which leaves no place for parking for
those who come home late.
Despite defining the area assigned to each vehicle, still cars are parked between two parking
spots. One vehicle occupies the space for 2-3 vehicles leading to mismanagement of space.
Two-wheelers are placed nowhere near the allotted zone. This creates a problem for other
people as they have to then spend a lot of time looking for parking spots in other localities. It
causes frustration and tension about the safety of our vehicles.
Various notices and warnings have been issued to the rule-violators, but to our dismay, no
change can be seen. I request you to take strict action as this is leading to verbal and physical
fights between the residents. An effective and speedy action is expected considering the
gravity of the situation.
Yours sincerely
Sanjeet
(A concerned citizen)

QUESTIONS FOR PRACTICE:

 Write a letter to the in-charge of text-books section of NCERT, New Delhi

complaining about the non-availability of text books even one month after beginning
of the new session. You are Rohit/Renu Rana of St. Xavier’s School, Delhi.
 Write a letter to M/s. Titan Corporation Chandigarh, complaining that the wrist watch
you recently bought from them does not function properly and ask for a replacement.
You are Dipti/ Deepak Gupta, 450, Sector 20, Chandigarh.

 Name: ________________ Date: ___________

Worksheets/Resource sheet/Term II October-November/ English Language/ Class VIII/ 2019-20 4

  Class & Sec:_______ Roll No. :______

English Idioms About People

 To be on cloud nine – To be extremely happy

 Wouldn’t hurt a fly – A person who is mild and harmless
 Like a fish out of the water – Very uncomfortable
 Fit as a fiddle – Very healthy and strong
 To have your head in the clouds – To be daydreaming and/or lacking concentration
 To be under the weather – To feel sick
 To be as right as rain – To feel healthy or well again
English Idioms About Relationships
 Like two peas in a pod – Two people who are always together
 To give someone the cold shoulder – To intentionally ignore someone
 To cut somebody some slack – To stop being so critical of them
 To give someone the benefit of the doubt – To justify or excuse someone’s actions,
and not assume malice
 To let someone off the hook – To not hold someone responsible for something he/she
has done wrong
 To rain on someone’s parade – To ruin one’s plans or temper one’s excitement

English Idioms About Communication

 To break the ice – To get the conversation going

 To beat around the bush – To avoid talking about what is important
 To pull someone’s leg – To say something that is not true as a way of joking
 To get wind of something – To hear a rumour about something
 To wrap your head around something – To understand something complicated
 To play the devil’s advocate – To argue against an idea for the sake of debate
 To see which way the wind is blowing – To try to discover information about a
situation before taking action
 To hear something straight from the horse’s mouth – To hear from someone who
personally observed a certain event
 The elephant in the room – An obvious problem that people do not want to talk about
 Comparing apples to oranges – Comparing two things that cannot be compared

English Idioms About Scenarios

 The best of both worlds – Benefiting from two different opportunities at once
 A perfect storm – The worst possible situation
 To be on thin ice – To be in a risky situation
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  A snowball effect – A situation that becomes more serious and potentially dangerous
over time
 When it rains it pours – Everything is going wrong at once
 To get out of hand – To lose control in a situation
 To get a taste of your own medicine – To be treated the way you’ve treated others
 To throw caution to the wind – To do something without worrying about the risk
 To bite the bullet – To force yourself to do something unpleasant or difficult
 Barking up the wrong tree – To pursue the wrong course of action
 To go down in flames – To fail miserably at something

English Idioms About Time

 Hold your horses – Wait a moment; slow down

 To do something at the drop of a hat – To do something at once, without any delay
 Once in a blue moon – Rarely
 To take a rain check – To postpone a plan
 To have bigger fish to fry – To have more important things to do with your time
 To miss the boat – To miss an opportunity
 Call it a day – It’s time to stop working on something

Miscellaneous Idioms in English

 A dime a dozen – Something is very common, or of no particular value

 By the skin of one’s teeth – Narrowly or barely escaping a disaster
 Come rain or shine – No matter the circumstances, something will get done
 It costs an arm and a leg – It’s very expensive
 It went to the dogs – Something is no longer as good as it was in the past
 Go on a wild goose chase – Go on a futile search or pursuit
 A cloud on the horizon – Something that threatens to cause problems in the future

Common English Proverbs

 Time flies when you’re having fun – Time seems to move faster when you’re enjoying
something
 Don’t count your chickens before they hatch – Don’t make plans that depend on
something good happening before you know that it has actually happened
 Every cloud has a silver lining – Difficult situations usually have at least one positive
aspect
 Don’t put all your eggs in one basket – Don’t risk everything on the success of one
venture
 Good things come to those who wait – Be patient
 There are other fish in the sea – There will be other opportunities for romance
 Curiosity killed the cat – Being inquisitive may get you into trouble
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  Absence makes the heart grow fonder – When the people we love are not with us, we
grow even more in love
 It takes two to tango – Both parties involved in a situation are equally responsible for
it
 The ship has sailed – It’s too late
 Two wrongs don’t make a right – If someone has done something bad to you, there’s
no justification to act in a similar way
 Save up for a rainy day – Put some money aside for whenever it may be needed
 It takes one to know one – Someone must have a bad quality themselves if they can
recognize it in other people
 You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink – You can’t force
someone to make the right decision, even after guidance is given
 You can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar – You can get what
you want by being nice.

Exercise 1: Unscramble the words in the brackets to complete the proverbs given below.

1. East or West :_______(EHOM) is best.

2. All that ________ ( ITESRGLT) is not gold.

3. Better to ask the way than to go ______(SYATAR) .

4. All work and no play makes Jack a _____(LLDU) boy.

5. _________(SRIKET) the iron while it is hot.

6. Don't count your ________ (CKNHSECI) before they are hatched.

7. Look before you ______(LAEP) .

8. It's no use crying over ______(ILPST) milk.

9. Better an open ________(EMYEN) than a false friend.

10. He who makes no ___________(MTKIESSA) makes nothing.

Exercise2: What is the meaning of the following idioms?

1. TO BE A BOOKWORM
a. to read a lot
b. to follow the rules
c. to not judge someone based on appearance

2. BY THE BOOK
a. when something is done and over with
Worksheets/Resource sheet/Term II October-November/ English Language/ Class VIII/ 2019-20 7
 b. a typical and dishonest action
c. to follow the rules

3. TO HIT THE BOOKS

a. to read a lot
b. to study
c. to show yourself clearly

4. OPEN BOOK
a. to not judge someone based on their appearance
b. to follow the rules
c. someone who shares everything about their lives

5. CLOSED CHAPTER
a. a typical and dishonest action
b. when something is done and over with
c. to follow the rules

6. TAKE A PAGE OUT OF SOMEONE ELSE'S BOOK

a. to do what someone else would do
b. to not make assumptions about someone
c. to like someone

7. DRIVE UP THE WALL

a. Make crazy
b. Make happy
c. Make sad
d. Make a car drive vertically up a wall

8. ICING ON THE CAKE

a. A sweet substance used to cover a cake
b. Something that makes a good situation even better
c. A horrible piece of news
d. Something that hurts someone else

9. Read the sentence below.

I did very well on the test, even though I didn't crack a book to study until the night before.

What does the idiom CRACK A BOOK mean?

Worksheets/Resource sheet/Term II October-November/ English Language/ Class VIII/ 2019-20 8

 a. Close a book
b. Break a book
c. Open a book
d. Lose a book

10.Which word best completes this common idiom?

Lucy finally saw the ________on the wall and realized she was not going to be a rock singer.

a. glitters
b. writing
c. weather
d. practice

Name: ________________ Date: ___________

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Class & Sec:_______ Roll No. :______

INTEGRATED GRAMMAR PRACTICE I

Exercise 1: Read the conversation given below and complete the paragraph that follows.

Ganga: How did you spend your holidays?

Gautham: I went for cricket coaching. What did you do?

Ganga: I went for the NTSC coaching classes.

Gautham: At least during the holidays you could have enjoyed yourself.

Ganga: I enjoyed going for the coaching classes.

Ganga asked Gautham (a) ………………… holidays. Gautham said that (b) ……………….
Cricket coaching and wanted to know (c) ………………. during the holidays. When Ganga
told him that she had gone for NTSC coaching classes, Gautham told her that she could have
enjoyed herself during the holidays. Ganga replied that (d) ……………….. the coaching
classes.

Exercise 2: Complete the following passage with the most appropriate words from the
options given.

An ATM, or Automated Teller is (a) …………………….. (a, an, the, no word) simple
machine which (b) ……………. (acting, acted, acts, is acted) as an extension of a bank even
(c) …………….. (as, which, when, where) the bank is closed. The machine (d) ……………
(was, is, has been, should be) usually placed (e) …………….. (at, of, in, on) a small room
with a security guard stationed outside. You can (f) ……………… (withdraw, withdrawal,
withdrawn, withdrew) money from your account, deposit cheques, order (g) ……………..
(a, an, the, no word) cheque book, get (h) ………………….. (my, our, somebody’s, your)
account statements etc. The ATMs work round the year, 24 hours a day.

Exercise 3: Read the newspaper headlines and then complete the sentences with the options
give below each.

(a) China Develops Medical Robot

A Polytechnic University in China ………………… that can conduct surgeries.

i) have developed a medical robot

ii) has developed a medical robot

iii) is developing a medical robot

Worksheets/Resource sheet/Term II October-November/ English Language/ Class VIII/ 2019-20 10
iv) will be developing a medical robot

(b) Bomb Blast Kills 17 Soldiers

A bomb blast in the cantonment area of Islamabad ……………………

i) killed 17 soldiers

ii) has killed 17 soldiers

iii) had killed 17 soldiers

iv) have killed 17 soldiers

(c) Suchitra Sen in Hospital

Bengali actress, Suchitra Sen …………………. with high blood pressure and fever.

i) was admitted into a hospital

ii) is admitted into a hospital

iii) had been admitted into a hospital

iv) has been admitted into a hospital

Exercise 4: Rearrange the following words and phrases to make meaningful sentences.

(a) where / unproductive work / check / you are / in / wasting time

(b) for self-study / the availability of time / for / check

(c) to complete / you need / judge / the syllabus / how much time

(d) for / allocate time / as per / different subjects / the need

Exercise 5: The following passage has not been edited. There is one error in each of the
lines. Write the incorrect word and the correction in your answer sheet as given below
against the correct blank number. Remember to underline the word you have supplied.

ERROR CORRECTION
Newton had a little dog name Diamond. (a)_________ ________
One day, when he is fifty years (b)_________ ________
old, he went out of his room, left the (c) _________ _________
dog asleep.
On the table lie his papers. (d) _________ _________
They contained all the discovery which (e) _________ _________
he had made while the last twenty years. When (f) _________ _________
he was gone, up rose little Diamond. He

Worksheets/Resource sheet/Term II October-November/ English Language/ Class VIII/ 2019-20 11

jumped up on the table and overthrow the lighted (g) _________ _________
candle. The papers caught fire. They were reduce (h) _________ _________
to a heap of ashes.

Exercise 6: Read the following conversation carefully and complete the following passage.

Ruby: Raj, how is your knee today? Is it still giving trouble?

Raj: No. It feels a lot better today. I went to a doctor and he told me it was only a pulled
ligament. I should be fine for Saturday’s game.

Ruby: Great. But why don’t you take it easy today? Maybe just practice throwing. Don’t do
any running.

Raj: OK.

Ruby asked Raj (a) ……………… and if it was still giving him trouble. Raj replied that (b)
……………. He told him that he had gone to the doctor, who (c) …………….. that it was
only a pulled ligament. He (d) …………….. for Saturday’s game. Ruby then suggested that
he should take it easy that day and just practice throwing and not do any running.

Worksheets/Resource sheet/Term II October-November/ English Language/ Class VIII/ 2019-20 12

Solutions
Ruby asked Raj (a) how his knee was that day and if it was still giving him trouble. Raj
replied that (b) he felt a lot better that day. He told her that he had gone to the doctor, who
(c) had told that it was only a pulled ligament. He (d) added that he would be fine for
Saturday’s game. Ruby then suggested that he should take it easy that day and just practice
throwing and not do any running.

Exercise1:

Ganga asked Gautham (a) how he had spent his holidays. Gautham said that (b) he had gone
for cricket coaching and wanted to know (c) what Ganga had done during the holidays.
When Ganga told him that she had gone for NTSC coaching classes, Gautham told her that
she could have enjoyed herself during the holidays. Ganga replied that (d) she had enjoyed
going for the coaching classes.

Exercise 2:

An ATM, or Automated Teller is (a) a simple machine which (b) acts as an extension of a
bank even (c) when the bank is closed. The machine (d) is usually placed (e) in a small room
with a security guard stationed outside. You can (f) withdraw money from your account,
deposit cheques, order (g) a cheque book, get (h) your account statements etc. The ATMs
work round the year 24 hours a day.

Exercise 3:

a) has developed a medical robot; b) has killed 17 soldiers; c) has been admitted into hospital

Exercise 4:
Worksheets/Resource sheet/Term II October-November/ English Language/ Class VIII/ 2019-20 13
(a) Check where you are wasting time in unproductive work.

(b) Check availability of time for self-study.

(c) Judge how much time you need to complete the syllabus.

(d) Allocate time for different subjects as per the need.

Exercise 5:

One day when he is fifty years (a) is / was

old, he went out of his room, left the (b) left /

leaving

dog asleep. On the table lie his (c) lie / lay

papers. They contained all the discovery which (d) discovery /

discoveries

he had made while the last twenty years. When (e) while /
during

he was gone, down rose little Diamond. He (f) down / up

jumped upon the table and overthrow the lighted (g) overthrow /
overthrew

candle. The papers caught fire. They were reduce (h) reduce /
reduced

to a heap of ashes.

Exercise 6:

Ruby asked Raj (a) how his knee was that day and if it was still giving him trouble. Raj
replied that (b) he felt a lot better that day. He told her that he had gone to the doctor, who
(c) had told that it was only a pulled ligament. He (d) added that he would be fine for
Saturday’s game. Ruby then suggested that he should take it easy that day and just practice
throwing and not do any running.

Worksheets/Resource sheet/Term II October-November/ English Language/ Class VIII/ 2019-20 14