General Training Writing Task 1 · informal · thanks

Letter to a friend thanking them for dinner

One of your friends invited you for a meal with his/her family in their home. You enjoyed the meal and had been happy to be introduced to his/her family.

Write a letter to your friend. In your letter:

thank your friend and say that you enjoyed the meal
say what else you liked about this visit
ask your friend to meet you someday at a restaurant

Write at least 150 words. You do not need to write any addresses. Begin your letter: Dear ...,

Band 8 sample letter

Dear Sarah,

I just wanted to drop you a quick note to say thank you so much for having me over for dinner last night. It was truly lovely to spend the evening at your place, and I cannot thank you enough for the incredible roast chicken; it was honestly one of the best meals I have had in ages!

Beyond the food, I was genuinely delighted to finally meet your parents and your brother. They made me feel so welcome from the moment I stepped through the door. I particularly enjoyed our long conversation about your father’s recent hiking trip in the Lake District; his stories were absolutely captivating and made the whole evening feel very special and relaxed.

Since you were such a wonderful host, I would love to return the favour soon. Are you free next Saturday? There is a fantastic new bistro that just opened downtown, and I would be thrilled if you could join me for a meal there as my treat. Let me know if that works for your schedule.

Best wishes,

Jamie

179 words. Names and details are invented; write your own.

Why this scores well

This letter achieves Band 8 by fully addressing all bullet points with a natural, consistent informal tone and sophisticated vocabulary. A common Band 6 mistake is writing a rigid, overly formal letter that lacks the warmth and personal connection expected when writing to a friend.

Write to a friend or relative by first name and close with Best wishes, Love or See you soon.
Contractions, phrasal verbs and a warm opening line are expected; a stiff formal tone loses marks here.
Still cover every bullet in its own paragraph; friendly does not mean unstructured.

Useful phrases from the letter

drop you a quick note: send a short and informal message to someone
genuinely delighted: feeling sincere and authentic happiness or pleasure
captivating: holding one's attention by being extremely interesting
return the favour: do something helpful for someone who helped you
thrilled: feeling very excited and pleased about something
downtown: in or towards the centre of a city

Write your own and get a band

Answer this prompt in a timed General Training writing test and get a band for task achievement, coherence, vocabulary and grammar, with the sentences to fix.

Practise IELTS General writing

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Frequently asked questions

Is this letter formal or informal?

Informal. Write to a friend or relative by first name and close with Best wishes, Love or See you soon.

How long should an IELTS General Training letter be?

At least 150 words, and 160 to 200 is the comfortable range. Spend about 20 minutes on it and leave 40 for Task 2, which carries twice the marks.