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Is A Weaker Verb. Is A Power Verb. You Sound More Confident and Interesting Using

The document discusses power verbs, which are strong action words that can make writing more compelling. Power verbs are especially useful on resumes to showcase skills and experience. Examples are provided of weaker verbs to avoid, like "did" and "made", and stronger alternatives like "conducted" and "developed". Lists of power verbs are given for various industries and contexts to help writers strengthen their language.

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Edi Rosado
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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
32 views9 pages

Is A Weaker Verb. Is A Power Verb. You Sound More Confident and Interesting Using

The document discusses power verbs, which are strong action words that can make writing more compelling. Power verbs are especially useful on resumes to showcase skills and experience. Examples are provided of weaker verbs to avoid, like "did" and "made", and stronger alternatives like "conducted" and "developed". Lists of power verbs are given for various industries and contexts to help writers strengthen their language.

Uploaded by

Edi Rosado
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
Download as docx, pdf, or txt
Download as docx, pdf, or txt
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What are power verbs?

Power verbs are action words that have positive meanings in English. When you use a power verb, you can
communicate your message more strongly and confidently than when using other verbs. This is especially
useful when you are applying for a job and want to appear as a confident and competent candidate. Power
verbs can also make your writing more interesting and help prevent you from using the same words too many
times.
The following sentences are examples from the Work Experience section of a resume. Notice the differences
between the sentences.
Made new software for ABC Company. → Made is a weaker verb.
Developed new software for ABC Company. → Developed is a power verb. You sound more confident and
interesting using ‘developed’.
Where can I use power verbs?
Power verbs are useful in many situations. They are especially great for resumes, job interviews, and
academic writing like essays.
Before you use a power verb…
 Make sure you understand the exact meaning of the power verb you are going to use. You don’t want
to make a mistake with the word, especially on a resume.
 Look the word up in a dictionary, search the internet for examples of sentences where it has been used,
and if possible, find someone to check your sentence to make sure that you’ve used it correctly.
 Make sure you are comfortable with the word before you use it.
Weak verbs to avoid: ☹
Here is a list of verbs you should avoid on your resume where possible:
 did  make  use
 get  look  take
 keep  have  said
 told  talk  change
 start  finish
GENERAL POWER VERB LIST
Here are some better alternatives to common weak words.
Weak Word: DID
 act  activate  administer
 apply  arrange  carry out
 conduct  execute  facilitate
 handle  perform 
Weak Word: MAKE
 assemble
 compose
 create
 design
 develop
 devise
 engineer
 establish
 fashion
 formulate
 generate
 produce
 synthesize
Weak Word: FIX
 alleviate
 amended
 debugged
 detected
 diagnosed
 investigated
 remedied
 repaired
 revitalized
 solved
 synthesized
 streamline
Weak Word: SHOW
 demonstrate
 depict
 describe
 exhibit
 highlight
 illustrate
 portray
 represent
Weak Words: TALK, SPEAK, WRITE, COMMUNICATE
 addressed
 advocate
 briefed
 communicate
 composed
 convince
 consulted
 collaborate
 correspond
 disseminate
 edited
 educated
 explained
 highlight
 inform
 instruct
 interact
 negotiate
 present
 publicize
 report
 specify
 verify
 welcome
Weak Word: KEEP
 ensure
 maintain
 strengthen
Weak Word: USE
 operate
Weak Word: GET
 achieve
 obtain
 procure
Weak Word: CHANGE, MAKE SOMETHING BETTER, GET RESULTS
 accelerate
 accomplish
 achieve
 alter
 award
 attain
 convert
 decrease
 eliminate
 expand
 excel
 generate
 heighten
 improve
 increase
 minimize
 maximize
 receive
 recognize for (passive verb = “is/was recognized for”)
 reduce
 transform
Weak Word: HELP
 aid
 assist
 bolster
 enhance
 enrich
 help
 provide
Weak Word: ADD
 compile
 strengthen
Weak Word: START
 initiate
POWER VERBS FOR SPECIFIC INDUSTRIES
Here are some power verbs we often use when talking about our experience in certain jobs and industries.
This is not a complete list of power verbs. I have covered some of the most common power verbs in the list
below, but there are many more. Please note that the same power verbs can be used for many different jobs,
so if you see a power verb in one job category such as medicine, it may also apply to a different job too.
Customer Service, Tourism, Hospitality, Retail Store
 accommodate
 address
 advertise
 advise
 aid
 anticipate
 answer
 assist
 assure
 clarify
 communicate
 distribute
 document
 exhibit
 explain
 handle
 help
 interact
 listen
 promote
 resolve
 support
 target
 translate
 welcome
Law & Legal Professions
 advocate
 amend
 analyze
 arbitrated
 extracted
 interviewed
 investigate
 lobby
 mediate
 negotiate
 represent
 specify
Leader & Management
 allocate
 approve
 assess
 assign
 authorize
 chair
 consolidate
 convince
 coordinate
 delegate
 direct
 encourage
 enforce
 guide
 head
 hire
 lead
 manage
 monitor
 orchestrate
 oversee
 recommend
 resolve
 run
 supervise
 spearhead
Business, Finance, Accounting
 account for
 anticipate
 appraise
 assess
 audit
 bargain
 budget
 demonstrate
 distribute
 estimate
 evaluate
 finance
 forecast
 fundraise
 identify
 implement
 inventory
 market
 measure
 negotiate
 project
 provide
 purchase
 record
 report
 streamline
 tabulate
 target
 total
Public Sector & Government
 accommodate
 advise
 allocate
 appoint
 authorize
 budget
 commission
 consult
 estimate
 evaluate
 finance
 identify
 implement
 institute
 issue
 officiate
 promote
 negotiate
 regulate
 represent
 sanction
 specify
Administrative, Clerical, Receptionist, Secretary
 administer
 answer
 aide
 assist
 arrange
 balance
 catalog
 categorize
 classify
 collect
 coordinate
 distribute
 edit
 file
 format
 handle
 issue
 order
 organize
 prepare
 record
 retrieve
 report
 schedule
Teaching & Advising
 assist
 coach
 encourage
 evaluate
 foster
 educated
 empower
 encourage
 explained
 guide
 highlight
 inform
 instruct
 prepare
 present
 promote
 supplement
 taught
Researcher, Scientist, Academic
 acquire
 analyze
 classify
 collaborate
 collect
 compile
 conduct
 consult
 discover
 examine
 formulate
 identify
 interpret
 interview
 lecture
 measure
 publish
 review
 share
 study
 uncover
IT, Computers, Tech
 brainstorm
 collaborate
 compile
 compute
 consult
 convert
 debugged
 detect
 determine
 develop
 fix
 format
 identify
 implement
 innovate
 launch
 program
 retrieve
 track
 transmit
 verify
Medicine
 advise
 care
 collaborate
 counsel
 detect
 determine
 diagnose
 dispense
 identify
 provide
 rehabilitate
 treat
 Engineer
 assess
 collaborate
 construct
 convert
 develop
 draft
 draw
 engineer
 implement
 innovate
 regulate
Machine Operator
 inspect
 install
 manufacture
 operate
 prepare
 repair

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