The best resumes highlight the achievements, accomplishments, and experiences that you have had over your career.
These resumes are fine-tuned and optimized to ensure that the candidate presents themselves in the most professional, experienced, and positive light.
We’re going to go through 550 positive action verbs to use on your resume which will help you to make a lasting impression.
On average, recruiters, hiring managers, and headhunters spend just 6-seconds looking through your resume. That is why it is so important to make an immediate impact and ensure you make a great first impression.
Important Notes on Action Verbs on Your Resume
When it comes to creating and writing your resume, you will want to avoid writing from a first-party perspective.
That means avoid using words like, “I led” or “I managed” or “I accomplished”.
Rather, try to stick to words that are written from a third-party perspective.
So, instead of saying “I led”, you should utilize the phrase, “developed and managed a team of…”.
Writing in a third-party perspective will help you to establish the overall accomplishment and ensure that your individual contributions are fully recognized.
Below, you’ll find a full list of 550 positive action verbs to use on your resume.
By using these action verbs, you’ll be able to fully, accurately, and thoroughly describe the projects you completed experiences you’ve had, and accomplishments you made.
Action Verbs Starting With A
Accelerated
Accomplished
Accounted for
Accumulated
Achieved
Acquired
Acted
Activated
Active in
Adapted
Addressed
Adjusted
Administered
Advanced
Advertised
Advised
Advocated
Affected
Aided
Alerted
Allocated
Amplified
Analyzed
Answered
Anticipated
Applied
Appointed
Appraised
Approved
Arbitrated
Arranged
Arraigned
Arrested
Articulated
Ascertained
Aspired
Assembled
Assessed
Assigned
Assisted
Assumed responsibility
Assured
Attained
Attracted
Audited
Authored
Automated
Awarded
Action Verbs Starting With B
Balanced
Billed
Blazed
Boosted
Bought
Briefed
Broadened
Budgeted
Built
Action Verbs Starting With C
Calculated
Campaigned
Captured
Carried out
Cataloged
Caused
Centralized
Chaired
Championed
Changed
Channeled
Charted
Checked
Clarified
Classified
Closed
Coached
Co-directed
Collaborated
Collected
Co-managed
Combined
Commanded
Commended
Commented
Communicated
Compared
Compiled
Completed
Composed
Computed
Conceived
Conceptualized
Condensed
Conducted
Conferred
Conserved
Considered
Consolidated
Constructed
Consulted
Contacted
Contained
Contracted
Contributed
Controlled
Converted
Convicted
Coordinated
Corrected
Correlated
Corresponded
Corroborated
Costed
Counseled
Counted
Created
Critiqued
Crowned
Cultivated
Cured
Customized
Cut
Action Verbs Starting With D
Dealt with
Decided
Decreased
Defined
Delegated
Delivered
Demonstrated
Described
Designated
Designed
Detected
Determined
Developed
Devised
Diagnosed
Directed
Discovered
Dispatched
Dispensed
Displayed
Dissected
Distinguished
Distributed
Documented
Doubled
Drafted
Drove
Action Verbs Starting With E
Earned
Economized
Edited
Educated
Effected
Eliminated
Emphasized
Employed
Empowered
Enabled
Enacted
Encouraged
Ended
Endorsed
Energized
Enforced
Engaged
Engineered
Enhanced
Enlarged
Enlisted
Ensured
Entertained
Established
Estimated
Evaluated
Examined
Exceeded
Executed
Expanded
Expedited
Experienced
Experimented
Explained
Explored
Expressed
Extended
Extracted
Action Verbs Starting With F
Fabricated
Facilitated
Familiarized
Fashioned
Filed
Filled
Finalized
Financed
Fine-tuned
Fixed
Focused
Forecast
Forecasted
Formed
Formulated
Fostered
Found
Founded
Fulfilled
Functioned as
Furnished
Action Verbs Starting With G
Gained
Gathered
Generated
Graded
Graduated
Granted
Grew
Guided
Action Verbs Starting With H
Halved
Handled
Harmonized
Harnessed
Headed
Helped
Hired
Homogenized
Hypothesized
Action Verbs Starting With I
Identified
Illustrated
Imagined
Implemented
Impressed
Improved
Improvised
Incorporated
Increased
Indexed
Indoctrinated
Influenced
Informed
Initiated
Innovated
Inspected
Inspired
Installed
Instigated
Instituted
Instructed
Insured
Integrated
Interpreted
Interviewed
Introduced
Invented
Inventoried
Invested
Investigated
Involved
Issued
Action Verbs Starting With J-M
Joined
Judged
Juggled
Justified
Kept
Launched
Lead
Learned
Leased
Lectured
Led
Liaised
Licensed
Listed
Located
Logged
Machined
Made
Magnified
Maintained
Managed
Marketed
Mastered
Matched
Maximized
Measured
Mediated
Mentored
Merged
Met
Met with
Minimized
Mobilized
Moderated
Modernized
Modified
Monitored
Motivated
Moved
Action Verbs Starting With N-R
Named
Navigated
Negated
Negotiated
Netted
Observed
Obtained
Opened
Operated
Optimized
Orchestrated
Ordered
Organized
Originated
Outlined
Overhauled
Oversaw
Participated
Perceived
Performed
Persuaded
Photographed
Piloted
Pinpointed
Pioneered
Placed
Played
Planned
Predicted
Prepared
Presented
Presided
Prevented
Printed
Prioritized
Processed
Procured
Produced
Programmed
Prohibited
Projected
Promoted
Proofread
Proposed
Protected
Proved
Provided
Publicized
Published
Purchased
Pursued
Qualified
Queried
Questioned
Raised
Ran
Ranked
Rated
Reached
Realigned
Realized
Reasoned
Received
Recognized
Recommended
Reconciled
Recorded
Recruited
Redesigned
Reduced
Referred
Registered
Regulated
Rehabilitated
Reinforced
Related
Remodeled
Rendered
Reorganized
Repaired
Replaced
Replied
Reported
Represented
Reputed
Researched
Resolved
Responded
Restored
Restructured
Retrieved
Revamped
Reversed
Reviewed
Revised
Revitalized
Routed
Action Verbs Starting With S-W
Saved
Scheduled
Screened
Searched
Secured
Selected
Separated
Served
Serviced
Set or set up
Shaped
Shared
Showed
Simplified
Simulated
Sketched
Slashed
Sold
Solidified
Solved
Sorted
Sought
Sparked
Spearheaded
Specialized
Specified
Spoke
Sponsored
Staffed
Standardized
Started
Steered
Stimulated
Stored
Streamlined
Strengthened
Stressed
Stretched
Structured
Studied
Submitted
Substituted
Succeeded
Suggested
Summarized
Superseded
Supervised
Supplemented
Supplied
Supported
Surpassed
Surveyed
Synchronized
Synergized
Systematized
Tabulated
Tackled
Targeted
Taught
Terminated
Tested
Tightened
Took or took over
Totaled
Toured
Traced
Tracked
Traded
Trained
Transcribed
Transferred
Transformed
Translated
Transmitted
Transported
Traveled
Treated
Triggered
Trimmed
Tripled
Triumphed
Troubleshot
Turned
Tutored
Typed
Umpired
Uncovered
Understood
Understudied
Undertook
Underwent
Underwrote
Unearthed
Unified
United
Unraveled
Updated
Upgraded
Urged
Used
Utilized
Validated
Valued
Verbalized
Verified
Visited
Vitalized
Volunteered
Waged
Weighed
Widened
Won
Worked
Wrote
