spite
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a feeling of wanting to annoy or upset someone, often because you feel they have treated you badly.
n.a desire to harm, annoy, or frustrate someone, typically characterized by petty malice or ill will.
Simple“He only invited her ex-boyfriend to the party out of pure spite.”
In context“The decision to block the promotion seemed to be motivated more by personal spite than by any objective assessment of her professional performance.”
- 02 B1 Intermediate
prep.used to say that something happens even though there is something else that might prevent it.
prep.functioning as a complex preposition meaning 'notwithstanding' or 'despite'.
Simple“In spite of the heavy rain, the football match continued until the end.”
In context“The company reported record profits in spite of the global economic downturn and rising energy costs.”
UsageAlways used in the fixed phrase 'in spite of'.
PitfallHe went out in spite the rain. He went out in spite of the rain.The word 'spite' must be followed by 'of' when used as a preposition.
Synonyms
“We do it in spite of our platforms, not because of them.”
From Middle English spit, a shortening of despit (whence despite), from Old French despit, from Latin dēspectum (“looking down on”), from Latin dēspiciō (“to look down, despise”). Compare also North Frisian spīt, spīd (“regret”), Saterland Frisian Spiet (“regret, remorse”), West Frisian spyt (“regret”), Dutch spijt (“regret, remorse”), German Low German Spiet (“anger, regret, remorse”), German Spiet (“annoyance, vexation”), Swedish spit (“insult, outrage, annoyance”), Norwegian spit (“insult, outrage, annoyance”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.