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despite

di-SPYT/dɪˈspaɪt/

Noun pluraldespites

5 meanings of despite

Practice

  1. 1
    even withpreposition
    Used before a noun to show that something happens even though that thing would normally prevent it.

    Despite the heavy traffic, they arrived on time.

    He stayed calm despite the bad news.

    UsageFollowed by a noun or an -ing form: despite the rain (not incorrect: despite of the rain), despite being tired. With a clause, use although.

    Similarnotwithstanding

    Note

    A preposition that began as a phrase built on a noun. Middle English in dispit of was literally 'in contempt of', and it wore down to a single word. Shakespeare's sonnets of 1609 still keep the of: 'dispight of wrinkles'.

  2. 2
    insultnounarchaiccountable
    An act or piece of behavior that displays malice; an outrage or insult.
    a deſpite done againſt the Moſt High
    1667, John Milton, Paradise Lost
    Note

    The feeling becomes a deed, and the verb that goes with it is do. Malory's knights seek to avenge 'the despyte that he had done'. The King James Bible of 1611 condemns one who 'hath done despite unto the spirit', and Milton's Paradise Lost has 'a despite done against the Most High'. The sense is archaic now and suits writing that wants a biblical or chivalric ring, especially where something sacred is offended.

    Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 6 facts

  3. 3
    nounobsoleteuncountable
    Contempt and disdain toward someone or something; scornful hatred.
    all thy despite against the land of Israel
    1611, The Holy Bible, King James Version

    Similarcontempt

    Note

    Here the word keeps its Latin picture. It comes through Old French despit from Latin dēspectum, 'looking down on', from the verb that also gave despise. The contempt is felt rather than acted out: the King James Bible of 1611 speaks of 'all thy despite against the land of Israel'. The sense is obsolete, so readers meet it in older texts, and modern writing reaches for disdain or contempt instead.

    Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

    • Despite comes through Old French despit from Latin dēspectum, meaning 'looking down on'. en.wiktionary.org
    • Despite and despise derive ultimately from the same Latin verb. en.wiktionary.org
    • The King James Bible was first published in 1611. en.wikipedia.org
    • Ezekiel 25:6 contains the quoted words and describes an inward feeling. en.wikisource.org

Less common meanings

  1. 4
    verbobsolete
    To vex or annoy someone while treating them with contempt; to offend deliberately and scornfully.
    to despite his opposites
    1614, Walter Raleigh, The Historie of the World
    Note

    A verb with its own line of descent. It comes from Middle English despite and Old French despitier, which was already a verb, so this is not the noun put to work. It is regular (despited, despiting) and takes the offended person as its object. Walter Raleigh's Historie of the World (1614) has 'to despite his opposites'. The verb is obsolete and is met only in older writing like his.

  2. 5
    nounliterary
    A feeling of malice or ill will; the desire to harm or annoy another person.
    And for these Corcyraeans—neither receive them into alliance in our despite, nor be their abettors in crime.
    1874, Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War

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Origins

Meanings 1–3

Latin dēspiciō ('to look down, despise') gave dēspectum ('looking down on'), which became Old French despit and then Middle English despit, the source of the noun. The preposition grew out of a Middle English phrase, in dispit of ('in despite of').

Meaning 4

Old French despitier is the source; Middle English had it as despite, with spellings such as dispite and dyspite.