10/28/2019 'in spite of', 'despite', 'although', 'even though' and 'though' | Grammar – intermediate | British Council LearnEnglish

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'in spite of', 'despite', 'although', 'even though' and 'though'

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Do you need more help with your English? Take an online

English course (/courses/online).

Do you know how to connect two contrasting ideas using

although, even though, in spite of and despite?

Look at these examples to see how although, even though, in spite of and

despite are used.

Although we don't agree, I think she's a brilliant speaker.

Even though we don't agree, I think she's a brilliant speaker.

In spite of the law, people continue to use mobile phones while

driving.

Despite the law, people continue to use mobile phones while

driving.

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

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10/28/2019 'in spite of', 'despite', 'although', 'even though' and 'though' | Grammar – intermediate | British Council LearnEnglish

Grammar test 1

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation

Although, even though, in spite of and despite are all used to link two

contrasting ideas or show that one fact makes the other fact surprising.

They can all be used at the beginning or in the middle of the sentence. 

Despite the rain, we enjoyed the festival.

We enjoyed the festival, despite the rain.

The main difference between although, even though, in spite of and despite

is that they are used with different structures. 

in spite of / despite

After in spite of and despite, we use a noun, gerund (-ing form of a verb) or

a pronoun.

They never made much money, in spite of their success.

In spite of the pain in his leg, he completed the marathon.

Despite having a headache, I had a great birthday.

The train was cancelled. In spite of that, we arrived on time.

Note that it is common to use in spite of and despite with the expression

the fact that, followed by a subject and verb.

In spite of the fact that he worked very hard, he didn't pass the

exam.

Despite the fact that he worked very hard, he didn't pass the

exam.

although / even though

After although and even though, we use a subject and a verb. Even though

is slightly stronger and more emphatic than although.

I enjoyed the course, although I would have liked more grammar

practice.

Although we saw each other every day, we didn't really know each

other.

Even though she spoke very quietly, he understood every word.

She didn't get the job, even though she had all the necessary

qualifications.

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10/28/2019 'in spite of', 'despite', 'although', 'even though' and 'though' | Grammar – intermediate | British Council LearnEnglish

though

Though can be used in the same way as although. 

Though I wasn't keen on the film, I thought the music was

beautiful.

Though can also go at the end of the second phrase. This way of

expressing contrasting ideas is most common in spoken English.

We waited ages for our food. The waiter was really nice, though.

Do this exercise to test your grammar again.

Grammar test 2

Try another grammar lesson

(

Language level t

t
Intermediate: B1
p

a
Comments
r

n
Quynh Nhu replied on 4 October, 2019 - 17:06 Vietnam

n
Dear sir,

I am having trouble choosing the right words to fill this g

blank:"If you sell your house before the end of this month, li

your taxes will be reduced by almost 30 percent …………..the

s
sale of your home." I have to choose between despite and
h
regardless of. But as far as my knowledge goes, these 2
.
words used quite similarly. Can you point out the difference

between them? b

Thankyou so much. r

Wish you have a nice weekend^^

it

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i

Peter M replied on 5 October, 2019 - 08:40 Poland c

il

Hello Quynh Nhu,

.
Despite and regardless of are both followed by nouns
o
(or gerunds) but there is a difference in the meaning.
r
Despite is used to show a contrast. If we say A

happened despite B, then we mean that normally B

g

would stop A or make it less likely. For example: /

g
I got a loan from the bank despite not having
r
a job.
a

Normally, not having a job would stop me from getting a m

bank loan, so the contrast/surprise is clear. m

 
a
Regardless of does not show a contrast in the same
r
way. Instead, it shows that a piece of information had no
/
effect. For example:

She won't like you regardless of how nice you n

are.
t

e
Here, the sentence means 'it doesn't matter how nice
r
you are, she still won't like you'. It doesn't tell us

whether or not you are nice, just that it won't make any m

difference. e

If we use despite then the meaning changes:

d

i
She won't like you despite how nice you are/
a

Now we know that you are nice, but it is not enough to t

make her like you. e

 
)
In your example, I think both forms make sense. The

choice is really dependent on the facts of the

legal/taxation system and the expectations

these create rather than the grammar of the sentence.

If selling your house would make you expect to pay

higher taxes then despite makes sense. If not,

then regardles of would be more likely.

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Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Quynh Nhu replied on 7 October, 2019 - 08:46 Vietnam

Dear Peter M,

THANKYOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR DETAILED

ANSWER. I FEEL SO RELEASED WHEN KNOWING

THAT I HAVE YOUR SUPPORT ON MY WAY

LEARNING THE BEAUTIFUL ENGLISH.

Leen replied on 23 September, 2019 - 17:18 Singapore

Hi,

Is it wrong to write, "Despite her old age, my grandma leads

an active life." Is 'her' redundant?

Peter M replied on 24 September, 2019 - 07:32 Poland

Hello Leen,

The sentence is fine. It's not old age in general which

you are talking about, but your grandma's old age. The

use of 'her' makes' this clear.

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Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Marianapr replied on 27 August, 2019 - 14:06 Cuba

Hello! Is there any rule regarding when to use “in spite of” or

“despite”??

Peter M replied on 28 August, 2019 - 07:16 Poland

Hello Marianapr,

You can use these interchangeably as there is no

difference in meaning or grammatical structure

between them. Both are on the formal side, but I would

say that 'despite' is a little more formal than 'in spite of'.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

zulqadah replied on 24 August, 2019 - 05:16 Pakistan

i have got 5 out of 5. i wanna learn and speak english

language fluently..but i dont have money to purchase such

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10/28/2019 'in spite of', 'despite', 'although', 'even though' and 'though' | Grammar – intermediate | British Council LearnEnglish

expensive courses ..what should i do plz suggest

Peter M replied on 27 August, 2019 - 08:31 Poland

Hello zulquadah,

The material on LearnEnglish is available free of charge,

so you can continue using this as long as you wish. You

can find material on different areas and at different

levels using the search function at the top of each page.

In my experience the best way to develop language

skills is to use the language, so try to find opportunities

where you like to practise. Interaction with tourists or

visitors to your country, for example, or even just

practising with your friends can be very helpful. Reading

is also very important. You'll pick up new vocabulary but

also develop a feel for things like word order, natural

phrasing and so on. There are plenty of sites online with

free ebooks, such as Project Gutenberg:

http://www.gutenberg.org/

(http://www.gutenberg.org/)

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Olzhas replied on 1 September, 2019 - 08:14 Kazakhstan

Thanks for your courses! Could you please advise

me free sites to prepare IELTS exam?

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