Definitions for Despite
dɪˈspaɪtde·spite

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:4.3 / 3 votes

1. contempt, disdain, scorn, despitenoun

   lack of respect accompanied by a feeling of intense dislike

   "he was held in contempt"; "the despite in which outsiders were held is legendary"

2. despitenoun

   contemptuous disregard

   "she wanted neither favor nor despite"

WiktionaryRate this definition:4.0 / 4 votes

1. despitenoun

   Disdain, contemptuous feelings, hatred.

2. despitenoun

   Action or behaviour displaying such feelings; an outrage, insult.

3. despitenoun

   Evil feeling; malice, spite.

4. despitepreposition

   in spite of

5. Etymology: From despit, from despectum, from despicere.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. DESPITEnoun

   Etymology: spijt, Dutch; dépit, French.

   1. Malice; anger; malignity; maliciousness; spleen; hatred.

   Thou wretch! despite o’erwhelm thee! William Shakespeare, Coriolanus.

   With men these considerations are usually the causes of despite, disdain, or aversion from others; but with God they pass for reasons of our greater tenderness towards others. Thomas Sprat.

   2. Defiance.

   The life, thou gav’st me first, was lost and done;
   ’Till with thy warlike sword, despite of fate,
   To my determin’d time thou gav’st new date. William Shakespeare, H. VI.

   My life thou shalt command, but not my shame;
   The one my duty owes; but my fair name,
   Despite of death, that lives upon my grave,
   To dark dishonour’s use thou shalt not have. William Shakespeare, Rich. II.

   Know I will serve the fair in thy despite. John Dryden, Fab.

   I have not quitted yet a victor’s right;
   I’ll make you happy in your own despite. John Dryden, Aurengzebe.

   Say, would the tender creature, in despite
   Of heat by day, and chilling dews by night,
   Its life maintain? Richard Blackmore, Creation.

   Thou, with rebel insolence, did’st dare
   To own and to protect that hoary ruffian;
   And in despite, ev’n of thy father’s justice,
   To stir the factious rabble up to arms. Nicholas Rowe, Amb. S. Moth.

   3. Act of malice; act of opposition.

   His punishment, eternal misery,
   It would be all his solace and revenge,
   As a despite done against the most High,
   Thee once to gain companion of his woe. John Milton, Par. Lost.

2. To Despiteverb

   To vex; to affront; to give uneasiness to.

   Etymology: from the noun.

   Saturn, with his wife Rhea, fled by night, setting the town on fire, to despite Bacchus. Walter Raleigh, History.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. despite

   Despite is a preposition used to indicate the occurrence of an action or event even though something might have hindered or prevented it. It generally signifies a contrast or contradiction, essentially meaning "in spite of" or "regardless of".

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:5.0 / 2 votes

1. Despitenoun

   malice; malignity; spite; malicious anger; contemptuous hate

2. Despitenoun

   an act of malice, hatred, or defiance; contemptuous defiance; a deed of contempt

3. Despitenoun

   to vex; to annoy; to offend contemptuously

4. Despite

   in spite of; against, or in defiance of; notwithstanding; as, despite his prejudices

5. Etymology: [OF. despitier, fr. L. despectare, intens. of despicere. See Despite, n.]

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Despite

   de-spīt′, n. a looking down upon with contempt: violent malice or hatred.—prep. in spite of: notwithstanding.—adj. Despite′ful.—adv. Despite′fully.—n. Despite′fulness.—adj. Despit′eous (Spens.). [O. Fr. despit (mod. dépit)—L. despectus—despicĕre.]

Matched Categories

1. • Dislike
   • Disregard

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'Despite' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #625

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'Despite' in Written Corpus Frequency: #2698

Anagrams for Despite »

1. seed pit

How to pronounce Despite?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say Despite in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of Despite in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of Despite in Pythagorean Numerology is: 6

Examples of Despite in a Sentence

1. The IOM:

   Despite deteriorating weather conditions, approximately 48,000 refugees and migrants crossed from Turkey to the Greek islands -- or about 9,600 migrants and refugees in each of the past five days.

2. Lindsey Boylan:

   I am thankful for the Attorney General, the investigators and all those who have pursued the truth despite intimidation and threats of retaliation, most importantly, I am in awe of the strength of the other women who risked everything to come forward. My hope always has been that this will make it safer for other women to report their own harassment and abuse. I will continue the fight to make that happen.

3. One European trader:

   If this is correct it would be a reason why Syria's wheat purchasing has been so restrained in recent months despite the apparent need for imports.

4. Tommy Xie:

   The announcement shows China's commitment to implement the phase one trade deal despite the disruptions from the recent virus outbreak.

5. Amitava Banerjee:

   The increased risk of heart attack with NSAIDs, regardless of which one, means that both health professionals and the public should weigh up the harm and the benefit when prescribing these medications, especially for more than a day or two, despite the over-the-counter availability of the traditional NSAIDs, this caution is still required. The mechanism of this increased risk of heart attack is not at all clear from existing studies.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=Despite
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Despite
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=Despite
4. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
5. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Despite
6. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=Despite