In Reply to: Re: When and wny did people start putting accent marks posted by UCLA78 on November 11, 2026 at 13:03:07
ya, ya, it comes from a language that has accent marks. In English, our adoption of those marks in the spelling of a word is extreeeeeeeeeeemely rare.
I asked whatever AI slop provider is on my search engine. I'll respond to the last line of its reply here: Americans sure as hell have started using the accents. Get with the times. And, it's weird, that all of the sudden, the accents are everywhere in the media when the word resume is shown.
Here's AI's response to my question:
When Americans Began Using Accents Over the “e” in “Resume”:
Americans have never widely used the accent in “résumé” in professional contexts — the accented form is a French original, and U.S. English has long favored the unaccented “resume” for simplicity
Resume Professional Writers
Resume Professional Writers
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Origins of the Accent
The word résumé comes from French, where it means “summary” and is spelled with two acute accents (é) over the “e”
Resume Professional Writers
Resume Professional Writers
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. In French, these accents are essential for correct pronunciation and spelling. When the term was borrowed into English in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it was used in professional contexts to describe a work history document.
U.S. Adoption and Decline of the Accent
In the United States, the accented form résumé was known in academic and literary circles, but it was never the dominant form in business or job applications. By the early 20th century, the unaccented “resume” had become the standard in U.S. professional writing because:
It’s easier to type on standard English keyboards without special characters
Resume Professional Writers
Resume Professional Writers
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It avoids formatting issues in digital systems
Resume Professional Writers
Resume Professional Writers
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It aligns with U.S. style guides and business conventions
Indeed
Indeed
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The accented form persisted in some academic, literary, and international contexts, but in U.S. job applications, “resume” without accents has been the norm for decades
Resume Professional Writers
Resume Professional Writers
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The “Resumé” Compromise
A hybrid form, resumé (one accent over the second “e”), emerged as a middle ground between the French original and the U.S. simplification
Resume Professional Writers
Resume Professional Writers
. This is still rare in U.S. business use but appears in some academic or international contexts.
When Did Americans “Stop” Using the Accent?
There was never a widespread, long-term U.S. practice of using the accent in “resume” in professional settings. The shift to the unaccented form happened gradually in the early 1900s, as U.S. style guides and business norms favored simplicity
Resume Professional Writers
Resume Professional Writers
+1
. The accented form remained correct in French and in some formal English uses, but it was never the default in American job applications.
In short: Americans have not “started” putting accents over the “e” in resumes recently — the accented form is the original French spelling, and U.S. English has long preferred the unaccented “resume” for practical reasons
Resume Professional Writers
Resume Professional Writers
+1
Here's a follow up question: Does The New Yorker Use Accents in “Résumé”?
Yes — The New Yorker generally uses the accented form “résumé” (with both acute accents on the “e”s) in its prose, in line with the Chicago Manual of Style and other style guides that preserve original foreign spellings.
Why The New Yorker Uses “résumé”
The word résumé comes from French, where both “e”s carry an acute accent (é) to indicate pronunciation. The Chicago Manual of Style advises preserving accents from foreign words where possible, and The New Yorker follows that principle in its editorial style
Resume Genius
Resume Genius
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. This is also consistent with Merriam‑Webster’s listing of “résumé” as the preferred form in American English, with “resume” as a variant
Resume Genius
Resume Genius
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How it compares to other style guides
Chicago Manual of Style – Recommends “résumé” with both accents
Resume Genius
Resume Genius
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Associated Press Stylebook – Prefers “resume” without accents for technical and digital contexts
Resume Genius
Resume Genius
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Merriam‑Webster – Lists “résumé” first, “resume” as a variant, and “resumé” as less common
Resume Genius
Resume Genius
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Practical note
While The New Yorker uses “résumé” in its written content, many U.S. business contexts — especially in job applications — default to “resume” without accents for simplicity and compatibility with computer systems
Resume Genius
Resume Genius
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. If you are writing for The New Yorker or other formal U.S. publications, “résumé” is the expected form; for technical or ATS‑friendly contexts, “resume” is safer.
In short: The New Yorker does use the accent marks in “résumé,” following the traditional French spelling and major style guides, but in U.S. business writing “resume” without accents is also widely accepted..
And .... in England - Use of Accent Marks in “Résumé” in British Periodicals
In British English periodicals, the word résumé is usually written without accent marks — as resume — rather than with the French acute accents (résumé or resumé)
www.interviewpanel.org
www.interviewpanel.org
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Why British periodicals drop the accents
Historical adaptation: The French résumé (with two acute accents) entered English in the 20th century. Over time, English has tended to simplify foreign words by removing diacritics, especially in general use
www.interviewpanel.org
www.interviewpanel.org
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British style convention: UK style guides and most British newspapers, magazines, and academic journals follow the Oxford English Dictionary and other authoritative sources, which list resume (no accents) as the standard in modern English. This aligns with the broader British tendency to omit accents in loanwords unless the original spelling is essential for meaning or pronunciation
Editage
Editage
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Practicality: Accents can cause issues in typesetting, digital layout, and Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS). British publishers often prefer the unaccented form for consistency and technical compatibility
bestresumehelp.com
bestresumehelp.com
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When accents may still appear
French-language contexts: If the periodical is in French, or is explicitly preserving the original French form, résumé with accents will be used.
Academic or linguistic works: In linguistics, literary criticism, or other scholarly contexts where the original spelling is relevant, British academic journals may retain résumé with accents
Preply
Preply
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Branding or stylistic choice: Some publications or authors may keep the accents for stylistic or cultural reasons, but this is less common in mainstream British periodicals.
Practical advice
If you are preparing a résumé for submission to a British periodical:
Default to resume (no accents) unless the publication’s style guide specifies otherwise.
Check the journal’s author guidelines or style sheet — many will explicitly state whether to use resume, résumé, or resumé.
In academic or French-language contexts, follow the source language’s spelling rules.
In short: In most British periodicals, resume without accents is the norm, with résumé reserved for French or specialist contexts
www.interviewpanel.org
www.interviewpanel.org
+2
.
Lastly, people here are going to say "of course it's spelled with accents!" and I'll respond, "what's the ascii code for the e with that accent, and do you even know which accent mark it is?, IOW, I call bullsh!t"