Looking for some good adjectives for your resume? Well, you’ve come to the right place! Our experts have created a comprehensive list of all the best resume adjectives, as well as a guide on how to use them effectively. On the other hand, if you’d rather get straight to writing your resume, take a look at our how to write a resume guide, or get one done in minutes with our professional resume builder.
Table of Contents
- The Ultimate List of Resume Adjectives by Category
- Five Weak Words You Should Avoid at All Cost
- How to Use Resume Adjectives Effectively
- When Not to Use Them
1. Resume Adjectives by Category
The following is a list of powerful adjectives that you can use to make your resume pack the punch you need to land an interview. But be warned, using them improperly can make your resume seem hollow. Be sure to check out our guide on using resume adjectives below to make sure you don’t make this mistake.
Adjectives by Industry and Skill:
Analytical/Critical Thinking:
Doing a lot of work that requires you to put your thinking cap on? These words are perfect for describing the meticulous and calculating tasks you do on a daily basis. They are particularly useful if you work in industries that require complex analytical thinking, such as finance, engineering, and information technology (IT).
| Astute | Intelligent | Perceptive |
| Calculating | Logical | Practical |
| Complex | Methodical | Shrewd |
| Discerning | Meticulous | Strategic |
| Insightful | Objective | Thoughtful |
Creativity & Innovation:
Demonstrating that you are a creative innovator has never been easier! The list below will enhance your professional experience section and have the hiring manager begging you to join their team.
| Cutting-edge | Ingenious | Robust |
| Elegant | Innovative | Sophisticated |
| First-class | Novel | Unique |
| Groundbreaking | Progressive | Unprecedented |
| Imaginative | Revolutionary | World-class |
Effectiveness:
No matter what industry you work in, proving that you have what it takes to do your job effectively is essential. These words are especially useful to make your skills section seems even more impressive.
| Accomplished | Fluent | Significant |
| Adept | Ideal | Smooth |
| Advanced | Industrious | Skilled |
| Competent | Influential | Skillful |
| Constructive | Instrumental | Strong |
| Cost-effective | Productive | Superior |
| Economical | Proficient | Qualified |
| Expert | Profitable | Quality |
Enthusiasm:
Energy! Passion! Dedication! Hiring managers love it when you display your genuine interest in the job. Use these words to show them that your high-spirits can’t be matched!
| Committed | Earnest | Passionate |
| Dedicated | Energetic | Sincere |
| Determined | Genuine | Spirited |
| Devoted | Keen | Wholehearted |
Hard-working:
Are you a driven and motivated individual? Are you willing to work tirelessly through the night to complete a key project? Emphasize this desirable personal trait with the list below!
| Alert | Enterprising | Studious |
| Attentive | Focused | Thorough |
| Concerted | Motivated | Tireless |
| Driven | Persistent | Vigorous |
Organization:
Organizational skills are needed for anyone in assistant or managerial positions. These words will help you describe your expertise in accomplishing tasks in an orderly and practical manner.
| Businesslike | Methodical | Step-by-step |
| Controlled | Orderly | Structured |
| Detailed | Precise | Systematic |
| Detail-oriented | Smooth | Timely |
Reliability:
Just as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, you can be counted on to perform — no matter the task. Use these words if you work in an industry where being dependable is key, such as law enforcement, healthcare, and finance.
| Accurate | Exact | Professional |
| Consistent | Fastidious | Punctual |
| Dependable | Honest | Resilient |
| Diligent | Impartial | Steadfast |
| Disciplined | Loyal | Sustainable |
Teamwork & Communication:
Strong communication is crucial for anyone who works on a team or deals with customers on a daily basis. These words will help you describe that you’re skilled at working in teams and keeping clients happy.
| Amiable | Coherent | Harmonious |
| Amicable | Cohesive | Personable |
| Articulate | Conscientious | Persuasive |
| Calm | Cooperative | Pleasant |
| Charming | Cordial | Positive |
| Cheerful | Courteous | Respectful |
| Clear | Diplomatic | Team-minded |
Versatility:
Do you work in a fast-paced environment that throws a diverse range of tasks at you everyday? Use the table below to prove that you are the master of multitasking.
| Adaptable | Countless | Flexible |
| Agile | Deep | Multifaceted |
| Capable | Diverse | Resourceful |
| Comprehensive | Extensive | Vast |
2. Five Weak Adjectives You Should Avoid at All Costs
1. Knowledgable:
Saying you are knowledgeable means nothing to the hiring manager. You have to prove it. Instead of using such a hollow descriptor, use words that describe the extent of your knowledge. Take a look at the examples below:
Weak:
- I am a knowledgeable Software Engineer.
Powerful:
- Software engineer with advanced knowledge of Java/JSP, Ruby, C and C++ programming languages.
2. Experienced:
Experienced falls short in much the same way as knowledgeable. Both lead us into the trap of thinking we have proved our worth, when in reality such adjectives are nothing but empty words. Specifically stating what you are experienced in, and then emphasizing that experience with the proper adjective, makes for a much stronger statement.
Weak:
- I am an experienced Software Engineer
Powerful:
- Software Engineer with extensive experience implementing service oriented architecture (SOA) and web services.
3. Results-oriented:
This is yet another word that doesn’t mean anything without proof. It is also completely unnecessary to use it on a resume, because a well-written professional experience section should be all about showcasing the results of your actions. After reading through your work history, the hiring manager should already be convinced you are results-oriented — stating so is completely redundant.
Saying it is Weak:
- I am results-oriented.
Demonstrating it is Powerful:
- Led 3 teams in the successful development of 40+ projects, resulting in over $15 million revenue for the company to date.
4. Various:
Using various – and other similarly vague quantity adjectives – can be dangerous because they give you a false sense of security. For example, when you state that you are “skilled in various techniques,” you make the mistake of thinking you are showcasing your versatility. However, by not being specific, it actually seems like you are trying to hide your lack of versatility.
Vague is Weak:
- Supported clients in complying with IT security standards across various frameworks.
Specific is Powerful:
- Supported clients in complying with IT security standards across HIPAA, PCI, GLBA, NIST, and ISO 27001 frameworks.
5. Self-starter:
A lot of “experts” will try to convince you that this is a must-have resume adjective. Don’t listen to them. Buzzwords such as this are just that — an annoying buzz in the hiring manager’s ear. You want words that will sting like a bee and get their attention.
The simple act of saying you are a self-starter doesn’t prove anything. Instead, at the start of each of your professional experience bullets, use action verbs that show your independence and initiative. Volunteered, initiated, spearheaded, and implemented are all good examples. Take a look at the the bullets below, and think about which candidate really seems like a self-starter.
Weak:
- I am a self-starter.
Powerful:
- Spearheaded an open source development project using PHP and MySQL to create free content management software.
3. How To Use Resume Adjectives Effectively
Using adjectives to create a powerful resume isn’t about throwing in some fancy-sounding buzzwords to make yourself seem like a super cool dude (or dudette). This will have the opposite effect, and make your claims sound hollow.
The true power of resume adjectives lies in their ability to enhance and emphasize the points you are already proving. This guide will go through each main section of a typical resume and show you how you can use certain words to strengthen them.
a. Career Objective: Emphasize your experience, knowledge, and personal traits
A career objective (or resume objective) is a short (but sweet) introduction designed to showcase your skills, experience, and attributes in a way that captures the hiring manager’s attention. Spicing it up with some tasty adjectives is a great way to help accomplish this.
You can use them to emphasize the extent of your experience, and showcase your personal traits. However, don’t describe yourself – doing so will weaken your statements instead of enhancing them. Take a look at the examples below to get a better idea of what we mean:
Don't
Experienced and compassionate Caregiver who has been providing care and assistance to elderly patients in assisted living communities for 5+ years. Looking to deliver care and companionship to the elderly in your community. Possess Geriatric Nursing Assistant certification and have concern for the physical and mental well-being of geriatric patients.
Do
Caregiver with 5+ years of extensive experience providing heartfelt care and assistance to elderly patients in assisted living communities. Looking to deliver compassionate, service oriented care and companionship to the elderly in your community. Possess Geriatric Nursing Assistant certification and have sincere concern for the physical and mental well-being of geriatric patients.
The impression you get from the second example is much more powerful. By describing your experience as extensive, you give the hiring manager the feeling that it is somehow more valuable than if you had just written 5+ years experience.
In addition, by enhancing their actions with words such as heartfelt, compassionate, and sincere, the candidate showcases their enthusiasm and compassion — all without the need to specifically describe themselves.
b. Professional Experience: Enhance your actions
In your professional experience section, use adjectives sparingly. They should only be used in cases where they legitimately enhance your actions and achievements, or describe the manner in which you performed an action. Otherwise, they can make your resume seem fluffy and unprofessional.
Take a look at the examples below to get a better idea of how to use them properly:
Example 1:
Normal
- Cultivated relationships with over 80% of patients, resulting in overall patient happiness and emotional well-being
Enhanced
- Cultivated amicable relationships with over 80% of patients, resulting in greater overall patient happiness and emotional well-being
Example 2:
Normal
- Led 10-member team in conducting the day-to-day operations of the plant, including the manufacturing of products, and implementation of 7 new production strategies.
Enhanced
- Led 10-member team in conducting the day-to-day operations of the plant, ensuring smooth manufacturing of products, and facilitating the cost-effective implementation of 7 new groundbreaking production strategies.
As you can see, while the normal statements are still strong bullet points, the addition of adjectives strengthens them even further.
c. Skills: Sharpen your skills
In your skills section, only use adjectives to emphasize your level of skill with a given technique or tool. Most of the words you can use for this are found in the Effectiveness category of our list. Let’s take a look at some comparisons:
With Adjectives
- Proficient with MS Word & Excel
- Fluent in English and Spanish
- Strong Communication skills
- Advanced/Expert knowledge of Python and Javascript
No Adjectives
- MS Word & Excel
- English and Spanish
- Communication
- Python and Javascript
Describing your skills in this manner makes your them seem sharper, and leaves a greater impression on the hiring manager. Just be sure not to over-embellish, or you could get into trouble during the interview.
4. When Not to Use Resume Adjectives
At this point, if you’re not using adjectives in one of the ways outlined in our guide above, then you might want to recheck your usage. However, since we’re a nice group of helpful guys and gals here at Resume Companion, we’ve also listed some of the ways you should avoid using them:
a. In place of quantification
Never make the mistake of using an adjective to describe something that could instead be quantified with a number. For example:
Don’t write:
- Managed enormous budget
Do write:
- Managed budget in excess of $300 million
Saying the budget was enormous is a subjective statement and it’s also extremely vague. Using specific numbers is more effective at emphasizing the enormity of the budget, and also gives the hiring manager a clear idea of your abilities.
b. If you can’t back up your claim in an interview
Don’t use adjectives just to sound impressive. Always make sure that what you are saying is true. Otherwise, when asked about specifics in an interview, you will fall flat on your face.
In your skills section, don’t say you’re an expert in something unless you can prove it in an interview. It’s better to have no enhancements in your skills section at all than to make false claims. The same goes for your professional experience section – don’t use adjectives to enhance or emphasize your actions unless your claims are true.
Let’s take another look at our earlier example:
- Led 10-member team in conducting the day-to-day operations of the plant, ensuring smooth manufacturing of products, and facilitating the cost-effective implementation of 7 new groundbreaking production strategies.
When making a statement like this, you need to be aware that the hiring manager may ask for more details in your interview. As such, before you make such declarations, you need to be able to answer the following type of questions:
- How did you ensure the manufacturing of products was smooth?
- What methods did you use to make sure the implementation of your production strategies was cost-effective?
- In what ways were the production strategies you implemented groundbreaking?
If you can’t answer these types of questions for each of the descriptions you are using, get rid of them. If you don’t, you could be in for a world of trouble in your interview.
c. To describe yourself
This rule is a bit less stringent, but generally speaking it’s best to avoid using adjectives to describe yourself. It gives you the illusion that you have impressed the hiring manager, when in reality you have proved nothing.
As Ned Stark from Game of Thrones once said, “words are wind, hiring managers only care about proof” (not 100% sure about the hiring managers part). Only use adjectives to describe yourself if you are prepared to back it up immediately afterwards.
