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Anonymous Posted 16 years ago
Letter Writing

When to use yours sincerly or your faithfully

Dear sir/madam
  

Top answer

Hi, The 'traditional' rule (for formal letters) is as follows: if you don't know the name of the recipient, start with " Dear Sir or Madam " and end with " Yours faithfully "; if you know the name of the recipient, start with " Dear Mr (or Mrs,or Miss) + surname " (eg. Dear Miss Jones ) and end with " Yours sincerely ". That said, use these only if you're writing a formal letter as a part of an ESL exam.

— Tanit

  • Hi, The 'traditional' rule (for formal letters) is as follows: if you don't know the name of the recipient, start with " Dear Sir or Madam " and end with " Yours faithfully "; if you know the name of the recipient, start with " Dear Mr (or Mrs,or Miss) + surname " (eg.
  • Dear Miss Jones ) and end with " Yours sincerely ".
  • That said, use these only if you're writing a formal letter as a part of an ESL exam.
  • " Yours faithfully " seems to be no longer in fashion.
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1 Answers
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Hi,

The 'traditional' rule (for formal letters) is as follows:
  • if you don't know the name of the recipient, start with "Dear Sir or Madam" and end with "Yours faithfully";
  • if you know the name of the recipient, start with "Dear Mr (or Mrs,or Miss) + surname" (eg. Dear Miss Jones) and end with "Yours sincerely".
That said, us
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