195 Action Verbs to Make Your Resume Stand Out

Some recruiters must read through hundreds of resumes, and so you have a limited amount of time to catch their attention. When writing a resume, it’s important to avoid weak and passive verbs, stay away from business jargon or clichés and watch out for tired words and phrases. These faulty word choices can undermine the strength and effectiveness of your resume. Instead, make a point of using powerful action verbs and avoid overusing the same verbs (such as “assisted,” “oversaw” and “utilized”).

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Resume Format

1. Name and contact information

2. Summary or objective

3. Professional history
   a. Company name
   b. Dates of tenure
   c. Description of role and achievement

4. Education

5. Skills

6. Optional (Awards & Achievements, Hobbies & Interests)

What are action verbs?

Action verbs are words that express an action. In a resume, action verbs are used to highlight your skills, experience and accomplishments. They are specific, clarify your contributions and bring a confident tone to your resume. Using action verbs that are unique and powerful can increase your chances of capturing the attention of an employer and moving to the next step in the hiring process. Here’s an example:

Lacks strength and clarity: “Held weekly status meetings to share client updates.”

Empowered and detailed: “Spearheaded weekly status meetings to communicate agency revenue growth.”

Can you see how the second option is stronger and more detailed? The action verbs make your contribution clear and impactful.

Pro tip: Combine your selection of action verbs with quantifiable results to show both what you did and the effect it had. For example, “Championed use of user feedback in program improvements, resulting in 50% boost in customer satisfaction ratings.”

Read more: 6 Universal Rules for Resume Writing

Resume action verbs

Below, you will find several action verbs grouped by impact type so you can select the most relevant words for your resume.

Action verbs to showcase accomplishments:

1. Achieved

2. Amplified

3. Attained

4. Capitalized

5. Chaired

6. Consolidated

7. Deciphered

8. Decreased

9. Discerned

10. Drove

11. Enacted

12. Endeavored

13. Established

14. Exceeded

15. Founded

16. Pioneered

17. Outperformed

18. Overhauled

19. Sharpened

20. Shattered

21. Sparked

22. Spearheaded

23. Steered

24. Stimulated

25. Streamlined

26. Strengthened

27. Supervised

28. Surpassed

Related: Why Action Verbs Are Important for Resumes (With Examples)

Action verbs to explain responsibilities:

1. Accelerated

2. Accomplished

3. Analyzed

4. Assembled

5. Built

6. Charted

7. Created

8. Constructed

9. Coordinated

10. Delivered

11. Developed

12. Executed

13. Expanded

14. Facilitated

15. Finalized

16. Forged

17. Guided

18. Handled

19. Headed

20. Improved

21. Increased

22. Initiated

23. Implemented

24. Instituted

25. Operated

26. Organized

27. Produced

28. Reached

29. Simplified

30. Volunteered

Related: How to Write Resume Job Descriptions (With Examples)

Action verbs to express communication skills:

1. Briefed

2. Campaigned

3. Collaborated

4. Composed

5. Conveyed

6. Convinced

7. Documented

8. Enlivened

9. Instructed

10. Performed

11. Presented

12. Promoted

13. Spoke

14. Trained

Related: 4 Types of Communication and How to Improve Them

Action verbs for creative experience:

1. Authored

2. Brainstormed

3. Communicated

4. Conceptualized

5. Curated

6. Customized

7. Derived

8. Designed

9. Diagramed

10. Drafted

11. Edited

12. Illustrated

13. Imagined

14. Influenced

15. Inspired

16. Intensified

17. Modeled

18. Proofread

19. Published

20. Redesigned

21. Researched

22. Strategized

23. Storyboarded

24. Translated

25. Transformed

26. Visualized

27. Wrote

Related: Here's Everything You Should Include on a Resume

Action verbs for sales experience:

1. Acquired

2. Boosted

3. Captured

4. Conserved

5. Converted

6. Earned

7. Gained

8. Generated

9. Maximized

10. Negotiated

11. Outpaced

12. Won

13. Yielded

Related: How to Write a Sales Resume Summary (With Examples)

Action verbs for leadership and management:

1. Advised

2. Aligned

3. Arranged

4. Augmented

5. Centralized

6. Championed

7. Cultivated

8. Differentiated

9. Directed

10. Empowered

11. Enabled

12. Endorsed

13. Enforced

14. Ensured

15. Forecasted

16. Formalized

17. Formed

18. Fostered

19. Furthered

20. Hired

21. Identified

22. Implemented

23. Integrated

24. Leveraged

25. Mentored

26. Merged

27. Motivated

28. Orchestrated

29. Optimized

30. Predicted

31. Reconciled

32. Reduced

33. Refocused

34. Renovated

35. Reorganized

36. Replaced

37. Resolved

38. Restructured

39. Revitalized

40. Shaped

41. Supervised

42. Sustained

43. Trained

Related: 10 Common Leadership Styles (Plus How To Find Your Own)

Action verbs for experience with finance:

1. Audited

2. Calculated

3. Classified

4. Collected

5. Equalized

6. Evaluated

7. Dispensed

8. Halted

9. Investigated

10. Lowered

11. Maintained

12. Minimized

13. Recognized

14. Secured

Related: Finance Skills to Include on Your Resume by Job Type

Action verbs for technical experience:

1. Advanced

2. Architected

3. Automated

4. Coded

5. Deployed

6. Detected

7. Devised

8. Diagnosed

9. Discovered

10. Engineered

11. Enhanced

12. Expedited

13. Formulated

14. Installed

15. Launched

16. Modified

17. Networked

18. Planned

19. Programmed

20. Remodeled

21. Rewrote

22. Refined

23. Tested

24. Troubleshoot

25. Updated

26. Upgraded

Related: Create an Indeed Resume to Easily Apply to Jobs