Inviting Relatives and Friends

With the wedding date fixed, Rahul and his family distribute invitation cards and personally visit elder relatives to invite them, as per tradition.

Meanings in Rahul, Vikram (father), Relatives, Friends

Key words and phrases

invitation carda printed card inviting someone to an eventThey ordered five hundred invitation cards.

guest lista list of people invited to an eventThe guest list had over three hundred names.

RSVPa request for guests to confirm their attendancePlease RSVP by the end of this week.

personally inviteto invite someone in person rather than by card aloneIt's a tradition to personally invite elders.

distributeto give out something to a number of peopleThey distributed invitation cards over two weekends.

save the datean early notice sent before the formal invitationThey sent a save the date message a month earlier.

confirm attendanceto tell the host you will be comingMost relatives confirmed their attendance quickly.

out-of-town guestsguests who need to travel from another cityThey arranged stay for out-of-town guests.

digital invitean invitation sent through phone or the internetYounger relatives were sent a digital invite too.

honourto show respect by inviting or including someoneThey wanted to honour their grandparents' friends too.

envelopea paper cover used to hold and post an invitation cardEach invitation card came in a golden envelope.

address lista record of addresses used to post invitationsThey updated the address list before printing labels.

close familythe immediate relatives such as parents, siblings, and grandparentsClose family were invited first for the puja.

wedding hashtaga unique tag couples create for guests to use on social mediaThey created a wedding hashtag for photos.

couriera delivery service used to send cards to distant relativesThe cards for relatives abroad were sent by courier.

wedding websitean online page with details about the wedding eventsThey shared a wedding website with all the schedule details.

sweet boxa box of sweets given along with the invitation card as a traditionThey handed over a sweet box with every invitation.

plus onean extra guest a person is allowed to bring alongThe invite mentioned that a plus one was welcome.

printera shop or person who prints the invitation cardsThey collected the cards from the printer this morning.

phone call invitean invitation extended verbally over a phone callHe gave a phone call invite to his old teacher.

Useful sentences

Ask Have all the invitation cards been printed?
Answer Yes, they arrived yesterday from the printer.
Ask Should we personally invite the elders in the family?
Answer Yes, that's an important tradition to follow.
Ask How many people are on the guest list?
Answer There are around three hundred names.
Ask Have our out-of-town guests confirmed their attendance?
Answer Most of them have, we're still waiting on a few.
Ask Did you send a digital invite to our friends abroad?
Answer Yes, I sent it along with a video message.
Ask Should we send the cards for relatives abroad by courier?
Answer Yes, we should send them out this week to reach on time.
Ask Have you updated the address list for the invitations?
Answer Yes, I added the new addresses just yesterday.
Ask Did we create a wedding hashtag for guests to use?
Answer Yes, it's printed on the card itself.
Ask Is a sweet box included with every invitation card?
Answer Yes, it's a small tradition we didn't want to skip.
Ask Can guests bring a plus one to the wedding?
Answer Only close family members were given that option.

Dialogue

VikramWe should personally visit your grandmother's sister to invite her.

RahulYes, Papa, it's important to honour her that way.

RahulI've finished distributing the invitation cards to our neighbours.

VikramGood. Did you also send the digital invite to your college friends?

RahulYes, and most of them have already confirmed their attendance.

VikramWonderful, let's finalise the arrangements for our out-of-town guests next.

RahulI've also sent the cards for our relatives abroad by courier.

VikramPerfect. Did you remember to include a sweet box with the local ones?

RahulYes, Papa, every single card had one attached.

VikramWonderful. Then we're almost done with the invitations now.

Common mistakes

Saying "give invitation" instead of "send an invitation" or "extend an invitation."
Saying "invite personally to someone" instead of "personally invite someone."
Saying "RSVP me" instead of "please RSVP" — RSVP already means 'please respond' and doesn't take an object like this.
Saying "send by courier the cards" instead of "send the cards by courier" (keep the object right after the verb, then add "by courier").
Saying "I updated address list" without an article instead of "I updated the address list" (use "the" before a specific, known list).
Saying "guests can bring plus one" instead of "guests can bring a plus one" (use the article "a" before "plus one" as a countable guest).

Quick quiz

1. What does "RSVP" mean?

2. Guests who need to travel from another city are called ___.

3. Complete: "It's a tradition to ___ invite elders."

4. What is a box of sweets given along with the invitation card called?

5. What do you call a delivery service used to send cards to distant relatives?

6. Which sentence is correct?

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