How to pronounce “resume”
“resume” is said two ways
/ɹɪˈzum/
rih-ZOOM
To start again after a pause. Beat on ZOOM.
/ˈɹɛzəˌmeɪ/
REZ-oo-may
The CV, usually written résumé. Three syllables, beat on REZ, ending in -may.
Listen for the beat, not the letters
One syllable gets longer, louder and a step higher, and the other one collapses towards a schwa. Say the whole sentence rather than the word on its own and let the grammar pull the beat where it belongs.Both forms live in one sentence here: “Send the resume tonight and we will resume the interviews on Monday.”Each button plays a short phrase rather than the bare word: the model voice takes its stress from the words around it, so asking it for “resume” on its own would play one reading twice instead of the verb and the noun. Read the transcription as you listen.
Say “resume” in 2 beats
resume
/ɹɪˈzum/
Everything in this card describes the verb form. As a noun it is /ˈɹɛzəˌmeɪ/.
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /ɹɪˈzjuːm/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- ɹɪɹɪ
- zumzumstress
- IPA (American)
- /ɹɪˈzum/
- IPA (British)
- /ɹɪˈzjuːm/
- Respelling
- rih-ZOOM (verb) · REZ-oo-may (noun)
- Syllables
- 2 — ɹɪ-ZUM
- Stress
- Stress the second syllable: ɹɪ-ZUM. “zum” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
- Part of speech
- noun, verb
- Difficulty
- Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
American and British are not the same here
This is the verb form in two accents — a separate question from the two pronunciations above, which are the same accent saying two different words.
/ɹɪˈzum/
/ɹɪˈzjuːm/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
Where “resume” goes wrong
- Often heard
“send me your rih-ZOOM”
the CV is REZ-oo-may; rih-ZOOM means to carry on
What “resume” means
- noun
short descriptive summary (of events)
- noun
a summary of your academic and work history
- verb
take up or begin anew
“We resumed the negotiations”
Say it in a sentence
“Send the resume tonight and we will resume the interviews on Monday.”“resume”, answered
How do you pronounce “resume”?
“resume” has two pronunciations: /ɹɪˈzum/ as a verb and /ˈɹɛzəˌmeɪ/ as a noun — the part of speech decides which. The spelling never changes; the beat does, and the vowels reshape around wherever it lands. The transcription and syllable breakdown below describe the verb form. Build it as ɹɪ-ZUM, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “resume” have?
2: ɹɪ · zum. The beat lands on the second, “zum”.
Which pronunciation of “resume” is correct?
Both are. /ɹɪˈzum/ (rih-ZOOM) as a verb; /ˈɹɛzəˌmeɪ/ (REZ-oo-may) as a noun. Nothing about the spelling tells you which — the sentence does. Move the beat and the word changes its job mid-sentence, which is why both are worth drilling. Both appear here: “Send the resume tonight and we will resume the interviews on Monday.”
Is “resume” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ɹɪˈzum/ (rih-ZOOM); British English says /ɹɪˈzjuːm/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “resume” mean?
As a noun: short descriptive summary (of events) For example: “Send the resume tonight and we will resume the interviews on Monday.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “resume”?
Stress the second syllable: ɹɪ-ZUM. “zum” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Now say “resume” and see every sound
Record it once and sayit lines your audio up against the target sound by sound — what landed, what slipped, and what it sounded like instead.