Sunday 7 December 2014

in spite of / despite / although

in spite of / despite / although

In spite ofdespite and although are all used to show a contrast but there are differences in the structures used with them.

In spite of / despite

After in spite of
 and despite we use a noun or a pronoun.
  • We enjoyed our camping holiday in spite of the rain.
  • Despite the pain in his leg he completed the marathon.
  • Despite having all the necessary qualifications, they didn’t offer me the job.
Remember that the gerund (‘-ing’ form) is the ‘noun’ form of a verb.

The only difference between in spite of and despite is the ‘of’.
  • Despite of the bad weather, there was a large crowd at the match.
Although

After although we use a subject and a verb.
  • We enjoyed our camping holiday although it rained every day.
  • Although he worked very hard, he didn’t manage to pass the exam.
  • The holiday was great although the hotel wasn’t very nice.
We can use in spite of and despite with a subject and verb if we include the expression ‘the fact that’.
  • In spite of the fact that he worked very hard, he didn’t manage to pass the exam.
  • Despite the fact that he worked very hard, he didn’t manage to pass the exam.
Even though

Even though is a slightly stronger form of although.
  • We decided to buy the house even though we didn’t really have enough money.
  • You keep making that stupid noise even though I’ve asked you to stop three times.
Like althougheven though is followed by a subject and a verb.

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