Résumé words
What to write instead
125 words and phrases that turn up on almost every résumé and do almost no work. Each page says what the word was trying to claim, why it underperforms, what to write instead and when each replacement fits, and one real bullet fixed end to end.
Every page also says when the original word is the right choice, because most of these are not banned, just overused. If you want the verbs grouped by what they claim rather than by the word they replace, start with résumé power verbs.
If the problem is a whole section rather than one word — an objective statement, your address, a GPA, a hobbies list — those have their own verdicts.
Start here
If you do not know which word is the problem
These six eat more bullets than anything else on a résumé. Fixing them in this order changes the most for the least work, and the first three usually account for half the page.
Ownership and duties
Phrases that describe the job description instead of what you did inside it.
- AdministeredThat you ran a system, benefit, budget, or programme by its rules.
- AssignedThat the work was formally given to you.
- Duties includedThat the following list was the scope of the role.
- MaintainedThat something kept working over time because of you.
- OrganizedThat you brought order to people, information, or an event.
- OversawThat you had authority over an area without doing the hands-on work.
- Responsible forThat a named area of work was yours to own.
- Tasked withThat someone senior handed you a significant piece of work.
Contribution
Words that hide how much of the work was actually yours.
- Assisted withThat you supported someone else on a piece of work.
- AttendedThat you were present at a course, conference, or meeting.
- Contributed toThat you were part of something and want to be accurate about your share.
- Helped withThat you contributed to something without overstating your role.
- Involved inThat you were part of something.
- Participated inThat you took part in a program, project, or event.
- ResolvedThat something broken or disputed was ended by you.
- SupportedThat you provided ongoing help to a person, team, or system.
- Worked onThat you were part of a project worth naming.
Building and making
Verbs for things that did not exist before you, and how to tell them apart.
- BuiltThat you constructed something from parts.
- CreatedThat something new exists because of you.
- DeployedThat you released something into a live environment.
- DesignedThat the decisions about how something would work were yours.
- DevelopedThat you built or matured something over a period.
- EstablishedThat something now exists permanently because you set it up.
- ImplementedThat you put a system, tool, or process into place.
- InnovatedThat what you made was genuinely new.
- IntroducedThat something now exists here that did not before.
- LaunchedThat something went public on a date.
- MigratedThat something moved from one system to another without breaking.
- Rolled outThat something reached an organization, in stages.
- ShippedThat something you built reached real users.
Improving and fixing
Verbs that need a before and an after to mean anything.
- AutomatedThat a machine now does something a person used to do.
- ConsolidatedThat several things became one.
- EnhancedThat you made something better.
- ImprovedThat something works better than it did.
- OptimizedThat you tuned something to perform better.
- ReducedThat a number you can name went down because of you.
- RefinedThat you made small adjustments to something already working.
- SimplifiedThat something became easier to use or understand.
- StreamlinedThat you made a process simpler or faster.
- UpgradedThat you moved something to a newer or better version.
Leading and managing
Verbs that carry an authority claim a reader will check.
- ChampionedThat you advocated for something until it happened.
- CoachedThat you improved somebody performance through direct work with them.
- CoordinatedThat you made separate parts or people work together.
- DelegatedThat you distributed work across a team.
- DirectedThat you set the direction and others executed against it.
- LedThat other people followed your direction toward something.
- ManagedThat people, money, or a process were under your control.
- MentoredThat you developed someone over time.
- PioneeredThat you did something nobody in the field had done.
- PrioritizedThat you decided what mattered most and what could wait.
- RecruitedThat you brought people into an organization or a team.
- RestructuredThat you changed how something was organized, not just what it did.
- SpearheadedThat you started something and drove it through resistance.
- SupervisedThat staff worked under your formal direction.
- TrainedThat you built a capability in other people.
Results and numbers
Verbs that promise a figure. Say the figure.
- AchievedThat you reached a target.
- CompletedThat something finished.
- DeliveredThat something finished and arrived.
- DroveThat something moved because you supplied the force.
- ExceededThat you went past a target somebody else set.
- GeneratedThat something valuable came into being because of your work.
- GrewThat something got bigger over time under your care.
- IncreasedThat a number went up because of something you did.
- SuccessfullyThat the thing you are describing worked.
Analysis and research
Verbs for finding something out, and whether you did anything about it.
- AnalyzedThat you examined data and drew something out of it.
- AssessedThat you judged the state or value of something against criteria.
- AuditedThat you checked something formally against a standard.
- ComparedThat you put options side by side to inform a choice.
- DiagnosedThat you found the cause of a problem, not just the symptom.
- EvaluatedThat you assessed options or performance against criteria.
- FoundThat you discovered something that was not previously known.
- IdentifiedThat you spotted something others had not.
- InvestigatedThat you pursued a specific question until you had an answer.
- MonitoredThat you watched something over time.
- PlannedThat you worked out how something would happen before it did.
- ResearchedThat you investigated a subject in depth.
- ReviewedThat you examined something carefully.
- TrackedThat you maintained a record of something over time.
Communicating and working with others
The influence verbs, which most people under-claim rather than over-claim.
- AdvisedThat someone made a decision using your judgement.
- AdvocatedThat you argued for something on behalf of a person or a position.
- AlignedThat you brought people or plans into agreement.
- AuthoredThat a document exists and you wrote it.
- BriefedThat you gave a senior audience what they needed to decide.
- CollaboratedThat you worked jointly with others.
- CommunicatedThat you conveyed information effectively.
- FacilitatedThat you ran a session and let the group reach its own conclusion.
- InfluencedThat an outcome went differently because of you, without your having authority.
- LiaisedThat you were the link between two parties.
- NegotiatedThat you reached an agreement between parties who wanted different things.
- PartneredThat you worked with somebody as an equal toward a shared outcome.
- PersuadedThat somebody changed their mind because of you.
- PresentedThat you delivered information to an audience.
- WroteThat a document, or code, exists because you produced it.
Tools and skills
How to name a technology without padding the sentence.
- Experienced inThat you have done this kind of work before.
- Familiar withThat you have some exposure to a tool or subject.
- Knowledge ofThat you understand a subject or system.
- Proficient inThat you are competent with a named tool.
- UsedThat a tool or method was part of how you worked.
- UtilizedThat you used a tool, system, or method.
Traits and self-description
Adjectives about your character. A reader discounts all of them, and here is what to do instead.
- Detail-orientedThat you are careful and catch mistakes.
- DynamicThat you are energetic and adaptable.
- Excellent communicatorThat you write and speak well.
- Fast learnerThat you pick things up quickly.
- FlexibleThat you adapt to changing requirements.
- Go-getterThat you act without being pushed.
- Go-to personThat colleagues came to you when they were stuck.
- Hard workerThat you will put in effort.
- MeticulousThat you work with unusual care.
- MotivatedThat you want to do the work.
- MultitaskedThat you handled several things at once.
- PassionateThat you care about the field and are motivated by more than pay.
- ProactiveThat you act before you are asked, or before a problem arrives.
- Problem solverThat you work out how to fix things.
- Proven track recordThat you have consistently delivered before.
- PunctualThat you arrive on time.
- ReliableThat people can depend on you.
- Results-orientedThat you focus on outcomes rather than activity.
- Self-motivatedThat you work without supervision.
- Self-starterThat you do not need to be told what to do.
- Strong work ethicThat you work hard and take the work seriously.
- SynergyThat combining two things produced more than the sum.
- Team playerThat you work well with other people.
- Think outside the boxThat you approach problems unconventionally.
- VariousThat there were several of something, without saying how many.
- Wear many hatsThat you covered several roles at once.
Every word, A to Z
All 125 of them, if you already know the one you are looking for.
Where the word list comes from
We read the action-verb lists published by 9 university career centers and counted how often each verb appears across them. Any verb on 7 or more of the 9 earned a page here, which is as close to settled advice as this subject gets.
That is all those lists decided. They are lists, and a verb printed in a table comes with no guidance about when it is the wrong word, so the argument on every page here is ours and you should weigh it as ours. Links checked August 27, 2026.
- Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyRésumé action verbs — MIT Career Advising & Professional Development
- Yale UniversityRésumé action verbs — Yale Office of Career Strategy
- Princeton UniversityVerbs — Princeton Center for Career Development
- Columbia UniversityAction verbs — Columbia Center for Career Education
- Georgetown UniversityAction verbs — Georgetown Cawley Career Education Center
- University of MichiganAction verbs for your résumé — Michigan Engineering Career Resource Center
- Washington University in St. LouisAction verbs for your résumé — WashU Career Center
- Tufts UniversityRésumé action verbs — Tufts Career Center
- University of California, DavisVerb list — UC Davis Internship and Career Center
After the résumé
Rewriting the bullets is the fast part.
The slow part is filling in the same forty fields on the fortieth application. Approve the jobs and we get them applied to, with a confirmation saved for each one. Free tier is 25 a month, no card, and a credit is only spent once a submission is confirmed.