Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[river1974]

Dear teachers:

When I write to someone, may I just call the recipient "Mr. ***" if I am not sure whether the recipient is a "he" or "she"? Or there are other proper ways? Thanks.

[lotus]

Hi river1974,

No, you cannot say "Dear Mr. ***" if you do not know the gender. If we do not know the gender of the recipient, we generally say "Dear Sir or Madam."

If we know that he is male, we say "Dear Mr. Smith." If we know she is female, we say "Dear Ms. Smith."

If we do not know the gender, yet want to be personal, we can state the name without the title - "Dear Pat Peterson."

If we know their gender and name and want to be more personal, we can say the entire name with the title - "Dear Mr. John Smith" or "Dear Ms. Jane Smith."


--lotus

[river1974]

Thanks lotus.