Hi, and welcome to this video about the different types of letters for IELTS General Training writing

Task 1.
As you have learnt, in Task 1 there are three levels of formality that you may need to use in your letter:
informal, semi-formal, and formal. It's important to read the question carefully and to identify the
purpose of the letter, as this will guide you to know which level of formality you need to adopt.
Look at these examples of letters. Can you identify which one requires a formal, semi-formal, and
informal tone?
The first one is semi-formal. These are letters usually to people you know but who are not friends.
Some examples of semi-formal letters are complaining to a landlord, apologizing to a neighbor, asking a
professor for permission, or requesting leave from your manager at work.
The second example is informal. Informal letters are written to friends. Some examples of informal
letters are inviting, thanking, apologizing, and asking for advice. If you are writing to a friend, but the
topic of the letter is particularly serious, you may need to adopt a more semi-formal tone.
The third example is formal. Formal letters are written to people that you do not know or people with a
high status. Some examples of formal letters include requesting information, making an inquiry,
applying for a job, and making a complaint.
Identifying the level of formality is important as it affects the language you need to use. You will learn
more about this in upcoming lessons.

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