salutation (greeting)

A salutation is a greeting, in particular a formal greeting used in a letter. Salutations usually take the form " X", or sometimes simply "X", usually followed by a comma or a colon.According to Wilbers:Salutations in formal letters end with a colon; salutations in informal letters end in a comma.Professional titles ("Professor", "Doctor") are preferred over social titles ("Mister", "Miss").Dignitaries are addressed by their titles. (e.g. "Dear Lord Mayor:")When the recipient of the letter is unknown—for example, in a letter of recommendation, or when writing to a company—the salutations "Dear Sir or Madam" or "To Whom It May Concern" are used.
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