Modern Spanish Grammar: A Practical Guide

Tengo/tenemos mucho agrado/gusto en comunicarles que...

I have/we have great pleasure in informing you that...

Note here the use of complacer‘to be pleasing’ and tener mucho agrado or gusto en

‘to have great pleasure in’, followed by the infinitive.

^26 (p. 131)

29.9.3.5 Requesting something:

Le ruego que me envíe...

Please send me...

Les rogamos que se sirvan mandarnos...

Please send us...

Le agradecería (que) me respondiera con la mayor brevedad/a la

brevedad posible...

I would be grateful if you would reply as soon as possible...

Note here the use of ruego, rogamos, present forms of rogar, literally ‘to beg’,

followed by que plus a secondary verb in the present subjunctive. Note also the

conditional agradecería, from agradecer‘to be grateful’, followed by que, which is

optional in letter writing, plus a subordinate clause with a verb in the imperfect

subjunctive.

 16.1.2.1 (p. 64); 18.1.1 (p. 84); 19.2 (p. 95); 68.1.8 (p. 383)

29.9.4 Closing a letter

29.9.4.1 To close a formal or business letter, the following phrases are used:

Very formal:

Atentamente,

Yours sincerely

Muy atentamente,

Yours sincerely

Le/les saluda/saludo (muy) atentamente,

Yours sincerely

Me despido/nos despedimos de usted/ustedes atentamente,

Yours sincerely

Reciba un atento saludo de

Yours sincerely

Less formal:

Le saluda cordialmente Sincerely yours

Reciba un cordial saludo de Sincerely yours

Note that le/les stands for masculine or feminine, singular and plural, respectively.

In Latin American Spanish you are more likely to find lo/la, or the plurals los/las, for

masculine and feminine, respectively, in this context. The verb saludar, literally ‘to

MAKING SOCIAL CONTACTS 29.9