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• resume
  resume

  verb (used with object)

  to take up or go on with again after interruption; continue.
• résumé
  résumé

  noun

  a short descriptive summary, as of events

Trivia Time

Resume, in the sense of "a written account of professional qualifications," comes from a French word meaning what?

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resume

¹ American  

[ri-zoom] / rɪˈzum /

verb (used with object)

• resumes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• resumed,
  past participle,  past
• resuming
  present participle

1. 

   to take up or go on with again after interruption; continue.

   to resume a journey.

2. to take or occupy again.

   to resume one's seat.

3. to take or assume use or practice of again.

   to resume her maiden name.

4. to take back.

   to resume the title to a property.

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verb (used without object)

• resumes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• resumed,
  past participle,  past
• resuming
  present participle

1. to go on or continue after interruption.

   The dancing is about to resume.

2. to begin again.

resume ² American  

[rez-oo-may, rez-oo-may] / ˈrɛz ʊˌmeɪ, ˌrɛz ʊˈmeɪ /

Sometimes resumé or résumé

noun

1. a brief written account of personal, educational, and professional qualifications and experience, as that prepared by an applicant for a job.

2. a summing up; summary.

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resume ¹ British  

/ rɪˈzjuːm /

verb

1. to begin again or go on with (something adjourned or interrupted)

2. (tr) to occupy again, take back, or recover

   to resume one's seat

   to resume possession

3. (tr) to assume (a title, office, etc) again

   to resume the presidency

4. archaic to summarize; make a résumé of

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résumé ² British  

/ ˈrɛzjʊˌmeɪ /

noun

1. a short descriptive summary, as of events

2. another name for curriculum vitae

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Spelling

Some French words borrowed into English preserve foreign features, like accent marks: café , déjà vu , résumé , séance , etc. In French, accent marks serve two purposes. They can mark a different vowel quality (the vowels e , è and é are pronounced very differently), or they may distinguish two words that would otherwise be homographs ( ou without an accent means “or,” while où with an accent means “where”). When you use these words in English, it is correct to write them with the French accents or without; the spellings divorcée and divorcee are both accepted. Some people prefer including the accent for accuracy or to evoke a subtle European flavor. The inclusion or omission of an accent mark when naming an establishment cafe or café suggests a certain expectation for the style and tone of the place. Other people find any use of a foreign accent mark to be unnecessary and pretentious. Be aware of your audience when making this decision. As in the original French, accents are useful for differentiating between two homographs. English speakers are more likely to keep the accents in a word like résumé or exposé in order to avoid confusion with the verbs resume or expose . Words without confusable English counterparts, like deja vu or cafe , are less likely to maintain their accents in written English. Generally, the use of foreign accents for words borrowed into English is optional. However, if you do choose to use accented letters, be sure to use the correct accent and be consistent within the word. For example, déjà vu has an acute (rising) accent mark in the first syllable and a grave (falling) accent in the second. The word résumé has two acute accent marks. Avoid haphazard or false accent marking, as sometimes seen in the spellings dejá vu or resumé . The best rule to follow for foreign accent marks is all or nothing.

Usage

Spelling tips for resume There are two words that use the spelling resume, and they’re pronounced very differently, which can make things confusing. As a verb meaning “to continue,” resume is pronounced [ ri-zoom ], which can sound like it should be spelled rezoom. As a noun referring to a list of a person’s professional qualifications, resume is pronounced [ rez-oo-mey ]. To reflect this pronunciation, the noun is sometimes spelled in the French manner, with accent marks (résumé or resumé), but they are not required and it is better to avoid using them. How to spell resume: First, remember that you don’t need any accent marks to spell the noun resume. You can remember how to spell the middle part by remembering that a resume should include the sum of your professional accomplishments. Then just remember that the verb that means “to continue” is spelled the exact same way.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• resumer
  noun
• resumable
  adjective
• unresumed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• resuming
  present
• resumed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• resume
  simple
• resumes
  simple
• have resumed
  perfect
• has resumed
  perfect
• am resuming
  progressive
• are resuming
  progressive
• is resuming
  progressive
• have been resuming
  perfect progressive
• has been resuming
  perfect progressive

Past

• resumed
  simple
• had resumed
  perfect
• was resuming
  progressive
• were resuming
  progressive
• had been resuming
  perfect progressive

Future

• will resume
  simple
• will have resumed
  perfect
• will be resuming
  progressive
• will have been resuming
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of resume¹

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English resumen, from Middle French resumer or directly from Latin resūmere “to take back, take again,” equivalent to re- “again, back” + sūmere “to take”; see re-, consume

Origin of resume²

First recorded in 1795–1805; from French résumé, noun use of past participle of résumer “to sum up”

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Explanation

If you resume something, you start it again after stopping. You might resume singing an aria after breaking to spit out your gum. Resume is from Latin resumere "to take up again, take back," from the prefix re- "again" plus sumere "to take up, take." The Latin verb sumere is formed from the prefix sub- "under, up" plus emere "to take." When you pause a movie or game and then you press play again, what you're really doing is resuming play.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

resume résumé resumes resumed resuming

Ohtani said he plans to resume pitching next year.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

A spokesperson for British Airways said the plane landed safely at Gatwick due to a "minor technical issue" and passengers were due to resume their journey.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

Brazil's Supreme Court on Monday authorized presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro to resume visiting his father Jair Bolsonaro under house arrest, as long as he does not involve him in campaigning.

From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026

With no flooding, refineries could be expected to resume operations within weeks, with roughly the same recovery timetable for offshore oil platforms, he said.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026

She could have gone in to her mother then and snuggled close beside her and begun a resume of the day.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan

As a sitting state legislator who knows how to run local elections as an organizer and candidate, Nixon has a résumé that has prepared her for Washington, said Carr.

From Salon ● Oct. 21, 2026

In a trial brief submitted earlier this year, prosecutors alleged Weinberg repeatedly traded on his Hollywood résumé and affiliation with “Scrubs” — the beloved hospital sitcom he wrote and produced for from 2001 to 2010.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

A desperate job seeker might not fact-check that affiliation and, thrilled to be contacted by the purported recruiter, send over her résumé or pay for consulting services to improve her chances at getting a job.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026

They will say your résumé isn’t up to par—but if you pay up, they will help you get an offer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026

“Did you hire that Chris guy? His résumé looked good.”

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

Search resumes for men missing in 'worst fishing tragedy for a generation'

From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026

Once Iñárritu peels the skin off, he resumes taking cheap shots at the exposed wound, reducing our connection to art to a distraction.

From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026

In the process, she discovered the forgotten digital detritus left on their hard drives: old resumes, photo albums, Word documents.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026

Canva’s Global Job Seeker Survey showed that approximately 57% of job seekers used AI to create their resumes in 2024, while another survey from data firm Clutch put that number at 84% in 2026.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026

Heather hops on the treadmill and resumes scheming.

From "Speak" by Laurie Halse Anderson

Analysts estimate Iran has hundreds to thousands of ballistic missiles, and officials believe it has resumed limited production using stockpiled components.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026

The South later resumed border loudspeaker broadcasts for the first time in six years, including K-pop and international news, while the North began transmitting strange, eerie sounds across the frontier, unsettling South Korean residents.

From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026

A search for the wreckage of Amelia Earhart's plane on a remote island in the Pacific Ocean has resumed after severe weather caused researchers to stop for several days.

From BBC ● Oct. 18, 2026

New listings also resumed a downward trend after rebounding in August, declining 1.8% from a month prior.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

She resumed her excited babble as she tore open the invitation.

From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood

They follow their network partner CMA CGM, which late last year began resuming some Suez transits.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

One of the world's biggest tin mines, located in an autonomous region of war-torn Myanmar, is resuming operations suspended since 2023 and ramping up exports to China, a think tank said Thursday.

From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026

Kinsella's pioneering journey back to the sport is so rare it became the subject of a university research paper into elite gymnasts resuming their careers after giving birth.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

Even if a governor rescinds the moratorium, resuming executions would be a long and complicated process because the state has no approved protocol or facilities to carry out death sentences.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026

Before resuming the search I spat twice on my right palm and parted the spittle with my left forefinger, watching to see where the most spit went.

From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane

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Related Words

• continue
• go on
• proceed
• regain
• reopen
• restart
• return to
• take up

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