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Mit freundlichen Grüßen<br />
Ihre<br />
Sabine Schneider<br />
Whether writing an informal or a formal letter, there are two ways of punctuating the salutation:<br />
with a comma or with an exclamation point. If you use a comma, the first line of your letter<br />
will begin with a word that starts with a small letter, because the salutation is considered to be<br />
part of the <strong>sentence</strong> that follows it:<br />
Lieber Rolf,<br />
Dear Rolf,<br />
es tut mir Leid, dass ich so lange gewartet I’m sorry that I’ve waited so long to answer<br />
habe deinen Brief zu beantworten.... your letter. . . .<br />
If you punctuate your salutation with an exclamation point, the first line of your letter will<br />
begin with a capital letter:<br />
The modern way<br />
Lieber Rolf!<br />
Dear Rolf,<br />
Es tut mir Leid, dass ich so lange ... I’m sorry that I’ve waited so long . . .<br />
Some new and rather trendy ways of opening and closing a letter have developed. You should be<br />
aware of them, but be careful to use them only when appropriate. If you are writing to a friend or<br />
relative, you can begin your letter with a casual salutation, such as:<br />
Hallo Tina!<br />
156 Practice Makes Perfect German Sentence Builder<br />
Hi, Tina,<br />
The closing of the letter would then normally also be casual:<br />
Liebe Grüße<br />
Best regards,<br />
This casual format can also be used with people whose relationship to you is more formal.<br />
For example:<br />
Hallo Frau Keller!<br />
...<br />
Liebe Grüße<br />
Even a formal or business letter can have a more up-to-date salutation and closing:<br />
Guten Tag, Herr Schmidt,<br />
...<br />
Freundliche Grüße<br />
And if you do not have a specific addressee, you can still use a more modern salutation and<br />
closing:<br />
Guten Tag!<br />
...<br />
Freundliche Grüße<br />
In letters that are typed, your signature will follow the closing of the letter. It is important to<br />
type your name after your signature, so that the recipient of your letter knows precisely who you<br />
are and doesn’t have to decipher your signature. If you have a job title, that will follow your<br />
name:<br />
Mit freundlichen Grüßen<br />
(Ihre Unterschrift)<br />
Michael Jones, Diplom-Ingenieur<br />
Yours sincerely,<br />
(your signature)<br />
Michael Jones, Professional Engineer
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