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Bonviveur Posted 16 years ago
Letter Writing
Shall & will or should and would
Which of these two sentences is correct when writing a letter please, and why
"I shall be grateful if you will send me details ....."
OR
"I should be grateful if you would send me details ..."
I am getting conflicting advice and am now totally confused
"I shall be grateful if you will send me details ....."
OR
"I should be grateful if you would send me details ..."
I am getting conflicting advice and am now totally confused
Top answer
" I am getting conflicting advice and am now totally confused I assume you are probably talking about a business letter rather than a personal one. That's because both of these, while not wrong, sound very formal and to my ear even rather old-fashioned. I'd say eg I would be grateful if you would/could send me details .
- " I am getting conflicting advice and am now totally confused I assume you are probably talking about a business letter rather than a personal one.
- That's because both of these, while not wrong, sound very formal and to my ear even rather old-fashioned.
- I'd say eg I would be grateful if you would/could send me details .
- .
- eg I would be grateful for details .
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8 Answers
0
Hi,
Which of these two sentences is correct when writing a letter please, and why
"I shall be grateful if you will send me details .."
OR
"I should be grateful if you would send me details ..."
I am getting conflicting advice and am now totally confused
I assume you are probably talking about a business letter rather than a personal one. That
Which of these two sentences is correct when writing a letter please, and why
"I shall be grateful if you will send me details .."
OR
"I should be grateful if you would send me details ..."
I am getting conflicting advice and am now totally confused
I assume you are probably talking about a business letter rather than a personal one. That
00
I'd say
eg I would be grateful if you would/could send me details . . .
eg I would be grateful for details . . .
eg Please send me details . . .
Clive[/quote]
why using "would be grateful....." instead of "will be grateful....." ?does "would" mean more polite or something else? i'm always wondering that what are the differences between will/would and will not/woul
eg I would be grateful if you would/could send me details . . .
eg I would be grateful for details . . .
eg Please send me details . . .
Clive[/quote]
why using "would be grateful....." instead of "will be grateful....." ?does "would" mean more polite or something else? i'm always wondering that what are the differences between will/would and will not/woul
00
Hi,
I'd say
eg I would be grateful if you would/could send me details . . .
eg I would be grateful for details . . .
eg Please send me details . . .
Clive[/quote]
why using "would be grateful.." instead of "will be grateful.." ?does "would" mean more polite
Yes, it adds distance, makes the statement less direct.
or something
I'd say
eg I would be grateful if you would/could send me details . . .
eg I would be grateful for details . . .
eg Please send me details . . .
Clive[/quote]
why using "would be grateful.." instead of "will be grateful.." ?does "would" mean more polite
Yes, it adds distance, makes the statement less direct.
or something
00
why using "would be grateful.." instead of "will be grateful.." ?does "would" mean more polite
Yes, it adds distance, makes the statement less direct.
i don't understand a bit,what does " adds distance, makes the statement less direct"mean?
can you further explain,thanks...
Yes, it adds distance, makes the statement less direct.
i don't understand a bit,what does " adds distance, makes the statement less direct"mean?
can you further explain,thanks...
00
Hi,
Let's consider a simpler example.
Assume you visit your friend, and she offers you a drink.
It's not polite to say 'I want a Coke'. The sentence feels too strong. It sounds like it will be a big problem if she doe not have a Coke in the fridge.
Instead, we typically say 'I would like a Coke'. This does n
Let's consider a simpler example.
Assume you visit your friend, and she offers you a drink.
It's not polite to say 'I want a Coke'. The sentence feels too strong. It sounds like it will be a big problem if she doe not have a Coke in the fridge.
Instead, we typically say 'I would like a Coke'. This does n
00
CliveAssume you visit your friend, and she offers you a drink.
It's not polite to say 'I want a Coke'. The sentence feels too strong. It sounds like it will be a big problem if she doe not have a Coke in the fridge.
Instead, we typically say 'I would like a Coke'. This does not seem so strong.
It seems more conditional, more like you are saying 'If y
00
Hi,
oh,i see...but does it feel too strong if i say 'i want a Coke'? So that means that generally, people will use "would like" to express what he/she wants something like a cup of coffee ,tea or food in most of the cases, instead of using 'want'.
Hence,'would like' is a common expression for a native speaker of UK or US,right?,Yes
oh,i see...but does it feel too strong if i say 'i want a Coke'? So that means that generally, people will use "would like" to express what he/she wants something like a cup of coffee ,tea or food in most of the cases, instead of using 'want'.
Hence,'would like' is a common expression for a native speaker of UK or US,right?,Yes
00
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