Writing an Email

A 150–200 word email covering every required bullet — in the tone the reader expects.

Time

27 min

Length

150–200 words

Bullets

Usually 3

Tone

Varies

What's expected

Read the audience first — friend, neighbour, colleague, manager, or stranger — and lock the tone before writing.
Cover every required bullet. Missing one caps your score at a lower band, no matter how well the rest reads.
Finish with a sign-off that matches the audience. The wrong close flags register drift to raters.

Answer structure

1
Greeting
Match the audience: 'Hi Sam,' / 'Dear Mr. Patel,' / 'Hello,' for strangers.
2
Opening line
State the purpose of the email in one sentence. No small talk.
3
Body
One short paragraph per required bullet. On topic, nothing padded.
4
Closing + sign-off
One closing sentence, then a register-matched sign-off and your name.

What raters look for

Coverage of every required bullet
Tone consistency from greeting to sign-off
Accurate, natural vocabulary (not flashy)
Readability — paragraphing, grammar, cohesion

A worked example

Prompt

Write to your neighbour. Your car was scratched in the shared parking lot, likely by their vehicle. (1) Describe the damage. (2) Ask how it happened. (3) Propose a fair next step.

Model answer

Hi Jordan,

I'm writing about my car, which I noticed has a long scratch on the driver's side this morning. It looks fresh, and based on where our cars are usually parked, I suspect it may have happened when one of us was pulling in or out.

Could you let me know if you noticed anything, or if there's any chance your car might have been involved? I want to stress — I'm not assuming anything, I just want to understand what happened.

If it turns out it was accidental, I'd suggest we each get a quick repair estimate and split the cost fairly. That seems like the quickest way to sort it out without involving insurance.

Thanks for taking a look,
Alex

Why it works

Greeting and sign-off sit in the same semi-formal register throughout.
Each required bullet has its own clearly-marked paragraph.
Tone is firm but not accusatory — the balance CELPIP raters reward.

Traps that cost points

Skipping a bullet because you ran out of time.
Mixing casual and formal greetings / closings in the same email.
Accusatory or over-polite language — both sound unnatural to a Canadian rater.

Pro bonusWriter's Warm-up

A 3-minute mental warm-up before every W1.

Pick one of three scenarios for W1 and walk through the audience → purpose → tone → structure decisions step by step. No typing. No scoring. Just the pre-writing habits that separate bands.

Open Writer's Warm-up