Letter apologising for missing an event
This is a sample answer written to show what a Band 6.5 response looks like, and where it falls short of Band 7. It is a worked example, not a graded submission. To see your own band, paste your writing into the free checker.
The prompt
You were unable to attend an important event organised by a friend. Write a letter to your friend. In your letter:
- apologise for missing the event
- explain why you could not come
- suggest meeting up soon to make up for it
Band 6.5 sample answer (167 words)
Dear Ben,
I am really sorry that I could not come to your birthday party last Saturday. I know it was a very important day for you and I feel very bad about missing it.
The reason is that my car broke down on the motorway when I was driving to your city. Firstly, I waited more than two hours for the recovery truck to come. Also, when it finally came, the driver said the car cannot be repaired on the road, so he took it to a garage. By the time everything was finished it was almost midnight, so it was too late to come to the party.
I really wanted to be there and I am very sorry again. I hope the party was great and everyone had a good time.
To make up for it, let's meet next weekend. I will invite you for a dinner in that Italian restaurant you like, and you can tell me everything about the party.
Write soon,
Anna
Why this reaches Band 6.5
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Task Achievement
All three bullets are present, but thinly: the apology is simply repeated ("really sorry", then "very sorry again") rather than developed, and the writer never says what missing the day meant to the friendship, which is what holds this bullet below Band 7.
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Coherence and Cohesion
The paragraphs are in a sensible order, but the linking is mechanical: "Firstly" and "Also" for what is really one continuous story, and "so" carries three consecutive clauses. A Band 7 letter would let the events connect through meaning.
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Lexical Resource
The vocabulary is clear but repetitive: "come" and "party" each appear four times, and feeling is expressed only through "sorry" and "bad". There is none of the precise, personal phrasing a Band 7 apology shows.
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Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Sentences are mostly simple or safely joined with "so" and "and", and there are small slips such as "the driver said the car cannot be repaired" (tense) and "invite you for a dinner". Meaning is never in doubt, but the range and control sit just under 7.
The one fix to reach Band 7
This letter stalls at 6.5 because it repeats "sorry" instead of developing the apology. The single change that would reach Band 7 is to say what missing the party actually meant ("I hated the thought of you looking round for me") and let that carry the feeling, cutting one "Firstly" or "Also" along the way.
Now check your own answer.
Paste your own attempt at this prompt and Examinerly names the single criterion keeping you below your target band, and shows the sentence-level fix. We never inflate your band.
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