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However vs Despite - What's the difference?

however | despite |

Despite is a conjunction of however.



As an adverb however

is nevertheless, nonetheless, even so, that said, in spite of this.

As a conjunction however

is in whatever manner (that).

As a noun despite is

disdain, contemptuous feelings, hatred.

As a preposition despite is

in spite of, notwithstanding.

As a verb despite is

to vex; to annoy; to offend contemptuously.

however

English

(POS mixed up)

Adverb

(-)
  • (lb) Nevertheless, nonetheless, even so, that said, in spite of this.
  • :
  • *
  • *:Thus, when he drew up instructions in lawyer language, he expressed the important words by an initial, a medial, or a final consonant, and made scratches for all the words between; his clerks, however , understood him very well.
  • *
    • , chapter=2, title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=That the young Mr. Churchills liked—but they did not like him coming round of an evening and drinking weak whisky-and-water while he held forth on railway debentures and corporation loans. Mr. Barrett, however , by fawning and flattery, seemed to be able to make not only Mrs. Churchill but everyone else do what he desired.}}
  • *{{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-29, volume=407, issue=8842, page=72-3, magazine=(The Economist)
    • , title= A punch in the gut , passage=Mostly, the microbiome is beneficial. It helps with digestion and enables people to extract a lot more calories from their food than would otherwise be possible. Research over the past few years, however , has implicated it in diseases from atherosclerosis to asthma to autism.}}
  • (lb) To whatever degree.
  • :
  • (lb) In whatever way.
  • :
  • *{{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-21, author=(Oliver Burkeman)
    • , volume=189, issue=2, page=48, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly) , title= The tao of tech , passage=But the real way to build a successful online business is to be better than your rivals at undermining people's control of their own attention. Partly, this is a result of how online advertising has traditionally worked: advertisers pay for clicks, and a click is a click, however it's obtained.}}
  • In what way?; how?
  • :

    • Usage notes

    * (nevertheless) Strunk and White’s (The Elements of Style)'' argues that the adverb ''however , in its sense of nevertheless, should be avoided at the beginning of a sentence.

    Synonyms

    * after all * but * nevertheless * nonetheless * notwithstanding * though * that said * still and all

    Conjunction

    (English Conjunctions)
  • In whatever manner (that).
    • Do it however you want.
  • To whatever extent.
    • However far he may get, there'll be many that get further.
    However much you prepare for the exam, there will still be a few questions on which you won't be sure of the answer.
  • (proscribed) Although, though, but, yet.

    • Usage notes

    *

    (although) The use of however'' as a conjunction meaning "but" is identical to its use as a clause-initial adverb meaning "nevertheless", except in punctuation (when written) and in prosody (when spoken). Hence, the following proscribed sentence:

    (proscribed) ''He told me not to do it, however''' I did it.''

    is equivalent to the following accepted one:

    (accepted) ''He told me not to do it; '''however , I did it.''

    In particular, when used as a conjunction in this sense, ''however always appears between the clauses it connects; it does not introduce a true subordinate clause that can be moved to the start of an independent clause, because a conjunctive adverb cannot do that.

    Statistics

    *

    References

    * * * * " however (degree)" in Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary (Cambridge University Press, 2007) * " however (despite)" in Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary (Cambridge University Press, 2007) * " however (way)" in Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary (Cambridge University Press, 2007) * * Oxford English Dictionary , second edition (1989) * Random House Webster's Unabridged Electronic Dictionary (1987-1996)

    Anagrams

    * whoever English conjunctive adverbs English degree adverbs English intensifiers

    despite

    English

    Alternative forms

    * despight (obsolete)

    Noun

    (-)
  • (obsolete) Disdain, contemptuous feelings, hatred.
  • *Bible, Ezekiel xxv. 6
  • *:all thy despite against the land of Israel
  • *1599 , (Much Ado About Nothing), by (William Shakespeare),
  • *:DON PEDRO. Thou wast ever an obstinate heretic in the despite of beauty.
  • (archaic) Action or behaviour displaying such feelings; an outrage, insult.
  • *:
  • *:he asked kynge Arthur yf he wold gyue hym leue to ryde after Balen and to reuenge the despyte' that he had done / Doo your best said Arthur I am right wroth said Balen I wold he were quyte of the ' despyte that he hath done to me and to my Courte
  • *Milton
  • *:a despite done against the Most High
  • Evil feeling; malice, spite.

    • Preposition

    (English prepositions)
  • In spite of, notwithstanding.
  • * 1592–1609 , William Shakespeare, Sonnet III :
    • So thou through windows of thine age shall see
    Despite of wrinkles this thy golden time.
  • * 1592–1609 , William Shakespeare, Sonnet XIX :
    • Yet, do thy worst, old Time: despite thy wrong,
    My love shall in my verse ever live young.
  • *{{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham), title=(The China Governess)
    • , chapter=7 citation , passage=The highway to the East Coast which ran through the borough of Ebbfield had always been a main road and even now, despite the vast garages, the pylons and the gaily painted factory glasshouses which had sprung up beside it, there still remained an occasional trace of past cultures.}}

    Derived terms

    * despiteful

    Verb

    (despit)
  • (obsolete) To vex; to annoy; to offend contemptuously.
    • (Sir Walter Raleigh)

    Anagrams

    *