Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1200-1300
Origin: despite (noun) (13-20 centuries); DESPITE

spite

1 noun
     
spite1 W3 [uncountable]
1

in spite of something

without being affected or prevented by something [= despite]:
We went out in spite of the rain.
Kelly loved her husband in spite of the fact that he drank too much.
2 a feeling of wanting to hurt or upset people, for example because you are jealous or think you have been unfairly treated
out of spite (=because of spite)
She broke it just out of spite.
pure/sheer spite (=spite and nothing else)
3

in spite of yourself

if you do something in spite of yourself, you do it although you did not expect or intend to do it:
The picture made her laugh in spite of herself.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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