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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

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”

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

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

According to a Bloomberg report, Qatar had assembled a fleet of at least 12 empty LNG tankers in the Persian Gulf, suggesting it was preparing to resume or increase shipments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

“When services do resume, please be kind to our operators and transit team as they navigate this unimaginable tragedy,” Puza concluded his announcement.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

But the CBP had said in a court filing this week that the pause had lapsed on September 30 and work would soon resume.

From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026

He perused the menu perfunctorily and listened to a conversation resume that he had interrupted when he walked through the door.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

Membership promises a standout résumé line, as well as access to peer and alumni networks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 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

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

And on July 17, she added one more piece of history to the résumé, passing Lisa Leslie to become the Sparks’ all-time leading scorer.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026

The first link was to a Harvard University page for a Professor Susan Thomas who worked in the math department, and below that was a résumé website for the same person.

From "From the Desk of Zoe Washington" by Janae Marks

Enzo Maresca's side go to Liverpool on 11 October when the Premier League resumes after the international break.

From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026

Everyone resumes their business, carrying with them the lesson of never sacrificing their spirit even while living in a state of constant vigilance.

From Salon ● Sep. 24, 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

AI career platform Kickresume carried out an experiment to see which resumes got the best responses, using a sample of over 200 resumes between April and June 2026.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026

Next day, on 12/10, Alex resumes quest for an opening to the sea, but only becomes more confused, traveling in circles.

From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer

It comes just weeks after the Chinese-developed, Singapore-based company said it had resumed independent operations after separating from the US tech giant.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

As people resumed gatherings and eased up on measures including masking and social distancing, the county saw upticks in flu cases in 2024 and 2025.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

The euro fell, albeit staying above recent lows, as oil prices increased and French government bond yields resumed rising.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

Released shortly after, they resumed their march and began a sit-in near Election Commission headquarters.

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026

Back at the Metropol Hotel, Bobby sat down with Reshevsky to analyze the position and consider possible strategies the older grandmaster might play when the game resumed.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

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

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

OpenAI halted training of its latest models for two weeks in August before resuming it under tighter controls.

From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 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

Talwani, in a ruling last week, criticized the Postal Service for resuming work on the project.

From Salon ● Sep. 2, 2026

I moved back home with the children in early August, resuming my duties, putting a good face over a sore heart, hiding the sun—as the people around here say—with a finger.

From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez

Related Words

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