Breakdown of Estimados señores: Quisiera cambiar la fecha de mi reserva.
de
of
mi
my
el señor
the gentleman / sir (form of address)
querer
to want; to love (a person)
la reserva
the reservation
la fecha
the date
cambiar
to change / to exchange, to swap (one thing for another)
estimado
Dear (opening a formal letter or email)
Questions & Answers about Estimados señores: Quisiera cambiar la fecha de mi reserva.
Why is there a colon (:) after Estimados señores instead of a comma?
In Spanish, formal letters and emails always use a colon after the greeting. Using a comma, like we do in English, is considered an error in Spanish punctuation.
Why use Quisiera instead of the conditional Querría or the present Quiero?
Quisiera is the imperfect subjunctive form of querer, but here it acts as a highly polite way to say 'I would like'. While Quiero is too direct for a formal email, and Querría is also fine, Quisiera is the most traditional formula for courteous requests.
Why use the word reserva instead of reservación?
In Spain, reserva is the standard noun used for a booking or reservation. You will often hear reservación in Latin America, but it is rarely used in Peninsular Spanish.
If I don't know who is reading the email, why use the masculine Estimados señores?
When addressing a company or an unknown group of people, the masculine plural Estimados señores acts as the default neutral greeting in Spanish. If you knew you were writing only to women, you would use Estimadas señoras.
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