Meaning & use

despite

preposition·Academic

Without being affected by; in spite of.

See it in a sentence

Despite the heavy rain, the outdoor concert went ahead as planned.

She finished the marathon despite injuring her knee halfway through.

A note on using this word

Despite is followed directly by a noun or gerund, never by of, unlike its close cousin in spite of.

Words with a similar meaning

notwithstandingregardless of

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Make it your own

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