<p>Yes, "亲爱的" does indeed has a slightly different connotation to the English "Dear". It is not used as liberally in Chinese letters and emails. "亲爱的" expresses a closer relationship than "Dear" does. The following are situations where you may or may not use it:</p>

<ul>
<li><p>When is it definitely OK:<br>
you writing to your spouse<br>
you writing to your lover<br>
you writing to your parent(s)<br>
you writing to your colleagues<br>
an organization writing to its customers or patrons<br>
an institution writing to its students</p></li>
<li><p>When should I use my own judgement as to whether its appropriate:<br>
male writing to a male friend<br>
male writing to a female friend<br>
female writing to a male friend<br>
male student writing to a female teacher (depending on relative age)<br>
male apprentice writing to a female mentor (depending on relative age)<br>
you writing to complete strangers</p></li>
<li><p>When is it definitely NOT OK:<br>
male writing to a female acquaintance<br>
male writing to a female colleague<br>
job seeker writing to the human resource department of a company<br>
anyone writing to higher authority</p></li>
</ul>

<p>In business <a href="http://baike.baidu.com/view/60368.htm">letters</a> (公函), salutations (修饰词) such as "亲爱的" are seldom used as it is quite informal and personal. Instead, "尊敬的" may be used if the letter is addressed to a higher authority. However it is often dropped, sufficing with just a title to address the person:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>XXX先生</p>
  
  <p>XXX经理</p>
</blockquote>

<p>For informal letters, "亲爱的" is appropriate if it is used to express closeness in a relationship. It could be written by an organisation. However, on a personal level, care has to be taken to avoid misunderstandings especially when the addressee is from the opposite sex.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-10-11T04:18:12.893Z
2012-10-11T04:18:12.893Z
杨以轩
<p>In English it perfectly fine in a business context and for someone you have never met before to use Dear XXXX at the beginning of a letter or email.</p>

<p>This causes some difficulty when moving to another language because 亲爱的 may have a slightly different connotation to the English "dear".</p>

<p>Rather than having answers that say "yes you can" or "no you can't", I would appreciate if you could split into the following:</p>

<ul>
<li>When is it definitely OK</li>
<li>When should I use my own judgement as to whether its appropriate</li>
<li>When is it definitely not OK</li>
</ul>

<word-choice><writing><greetings>
When is it appropriate to use 亲爱的?
# When is it appropriate to use 亲爱的?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2012-10-11)

In English it perfectly fine in a business context and for someone you have never met before to use Dear XXXX at the beginning of a letter or email.

This causes some difficulty when moving to another language because 亲爱的 may have a slightly different connotation to the English "dear".

Rather than having answers that say "yes you can" or "no you can't", I would appreciate if you could split into the following:

* When is it definitely OK
* When should I use my own judgement as to whether its appropriate
* When is it definitely not OK

**Tags:** word-choice, writing, greetings

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2012-10-11. Score: 7

Yes, "亲爱的" does indeed has a slightly different connotation to the English "Dear". It is not used as liberally in Chinese letters and emails. "亲爱的" expresses a closer relationship than "Dear" does. The following are situations where you may or may not use it:

* When is it definitely OK:  
  you writing to your spouse  
  you writing to your lover  
  you writing to your parent(s)  
  you writing to your colleagues  
  an organization writing to its customers or patrons  
  an institution writing to its students
* When should I use my own judgement as to whether its appropriate:  
  male writing to a male friend  
  male writing to a female friend  
  female writing to a male friend  
  male student writing to a female teacher (depending on relative age)  
  male apprentice writing to a female mentor (depending on relative age)  
  you writing to complete strangers
* When is it definitely NOT OK:  
  male writing to a female acquaintance  
  male writing to a female colleague  
  job seeker writing to the human resource department of a company  
  anyone writing to higher authority

In business [letters](http://baike.baidu.com/view/60368.htm) (公函), salutations (修饰词) such as "亲爱的" are seldom used as it is quite informal and personal. Instead, "尊敬的" may be used if the letter is addressed to a higher authority. However it is often dropped, sufficing with just a title to address the person:

> XXX先生
>
> XXX经理

For informal letters, "亲爱的" is appropriate if it is used to express closeness in a relationship. It could be written by an organisation. However, on a personal level, care has to be taken to avoid misunderstandings especially when the addressee is from the opposite sex.


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