Action Words

Action words, also known as action verbs, are verbs that specifically express what a person is doing or has done. When writing a resume, your bulleted action statements should begin with an action word. Be sure to vary your use of action words throughout your resume.

  • Absorbed
  • Accelerated
  • Accentuated
  • Accomplished
  • Achieved
  • Adhered to
  • Administered
  • Adopted
  • Advanced
  • Announced
  • Applied
  • Appraised
  • Apprehended
  • Assessed
  • Assigned
  • Assimilated
  • Assisted
  • Assumed
  • Attained
  • Attracted
  • Authorized
  • Balanced
  • Bargained
  • Beneficial
  • Benefited
  • Bolstered
  • Boosted
  • Budgeted
  • Built
  • Carried out
  • Caused
  • Charted
  • Checked
  • Closed
  • Collaborated
  • Combined
  • Commanded
  • Commissioned
  • Complied
  • Conducted
  • Constructed
  • Continued
  • Contributed
  • Controlled
  • Cooperated
  • Coordinated
  • Created
  • Critiqued
  • Delegated
  • Demonstrated
  • Derived
  • Designated
  • Designed
  • Detected
  • Developed
  • Devised
  • Directed
  • Discharged
  • Dispatched
  • Displayed
  • Earned
  • Effected
  • Efficient
  • Emphasized
  • Employed
  • Empowered
  • Enforced
  • Engineered
  • Enhanced
  • Enriched
  • Established
  • Exceeded
  • Excelled
  • Exercised
  • Exerted
  • Exhibited
  • Expedited
  • Featured
  • Financed
  • Forecasted
  • Formed
  • Formulated
  • Fulfilled
  • Generated
  • Granted
  • Guided
  • Handled
  • Helped
  • Hosted
  • Implemented
  • Increased
  • Indicated
  • Influenced
  • Initiated
  • Innovated
  • Instituted
  • Integrated
  • Invested
  • Investigated
  • Justified
  • Listed
  • Logged
  • Made
  • Maintained
  • Managed
  • Mapped
  • Mastered
  • Measured
  • Mentored
  • Merited
  • Mobilized
  • Modeled
  • Multiplied
  • Negotiated
  • Observed
  • Obtained
  • Operated
  • Organized
  • Originated
  • Outlined
  • Oversaw
  • Participated
  • Performed
  • Persisted
  • Planned
  • Pointed out
  • Pooled
  • Practiced
  • Prepared
  • Presented
  • Prevailed
  • Produced
  • Programmed
  • Progressed
  • Projected
  • Promoted
  • Prompted
  • Proposed
  • Provided
  • Pursued
  • Qualified
  • Quantified
  • Quoted
  • Reacted
  • Recommended
  • Recovered
  • Refine
  • Regulated
  • Reinstated
  • Rejected
  • Remained
  • Represented
  • Resisted
  • Resolved
  • Restored
  • Resumed
  • Retained
  • Revamp
  • Revealed
  • Revived
  • Saved
  • Scheduled
  • Schemed
  • Screened
  • Secured
  • Segmented
  • Seized
  • Shared
  • Showed
  • Simplified
  • Skilled
  • Specialized
  • Sponsored
  • Streamlined
  • Strengthened
  • Stressed
  • Succeeded
  • Supervised
  • Supported
  • Surpassed
  • Sustained
  • Synchronized
  • Synthesized
  • Taught
  • Trained
  • Transacted
  • Translated
  • Triumphed
  • Troubleshot
  • Tutored
  • Uncovered
  • Understood
  • Undertook
  • Unified
  • United
  • Updated
  • Upgraded
  • Used
  • Utilized
  • Validated
  • Ventured
  • Verified
  • Viewed
  • Withstood
  • Witnessed