We have performed a comparative study of resonance Raman scattering in transition-metal dichalcogenides 2H-MX 2 semiconductors (M ¼ Mo, W; X ¼ S, Se) and single-layer MoS 2. Raman spectra were collected using excitation wavelengths 633 nm (1.96 eV), 594 nm (2.09 eV), 532 nm (2.33 eV), 514 nm (2.41 eV), and 488 nm (2.54 eV). In bulk-MoS 2 and WS 2 , the resonant energies appear to coincide with their exciton excitations. The resonance can be fine tuned by varying sample temperatures, which confirms its excitonic origin in both MoS 2 and WS 2. Temperature dependence of Raman intensities is analyzed in the context of resonance Raman theory, which agrees well with the existing absorption data. While in WSe 2 , the resonance has been observed in a wider range of excitations from 633 to 514 nm, which cannot be explained with its excitonic energies of 1.6 and 2.0 eV. It is considered that additional excitonic bands induced by band splitting are involved in the inter-band transitions and substantially extend the resonance energy range. The Raman resonance energy range remains unchanged in single-layer MoS 2 compared with that in the bulk sample. However, most phonon modes in single-layer MoS 2 are significantly broadened or strongly suppressed under resonance conditions. This change could be related to the modification of acoustic modes by the substrate. V