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How to Explain Despite Vs. Although

November 8, 2012

So many ways to say the same thing…so confusing for students!

English, like all other languages, has many different ways to express one thing. For example, we can say “too,” “as well,” and “also,” and the meaning is virtually indistinguishable.

The same is true for these commonly confused words: despite, in spite of, despite the fact that, in spite of the fact that, although, though, and even though. These expressions are all used for the same case: to describe a situation where something is unexpected.

So how do we explain the different sentence structures and punctuation for these expressions? Over the years, I’ve developed an easy, clear way to present and teach these expressions to my students. I hope it works for you, too!

1. Unexpected situations

First, explain to your students that we use all of these terms to describe a situation that is unexpected. For example, if it is raining, we expect that most people would use an umbrella. If someone chooses not to use an umbrella, this would be an unexpected case. Write this sentence on the board:

  • It is raining. I didn’t use my umbrella.

2. Despite / In spite of + N

Next, explain to your students that despite and in spite of must be followed by a noun or gerund. You can also point out that despite and in spite of have the same meaning, but despite is more commonly used than in spite of. The latter is a little more formal.

a) Despite / In spite of + N, + SVO.

Write sentence pattern (a) and the following examples on the board, pointing out that we use a comma when we start the sentence with despite or in spite of (the adverb phrase).

  • Despite the rain, I didn’t use my umbrella.
  • In spite of the rain, I didn’t use my umbrella.

b) SVO + despite / in spite of + N.

Write sentence pattern (b) and the following examples on the board. Make sure to tell your students that we can also start the sentence with the main clause, with no changes in meaning. In this case, we don’t need a comma.

  • I didn’t use my umbrella despite the rain.
  • I didn’t use my umbrella in spite of the rain.

For examples using gerunds, write the following:

  • Despite studying all night, she didn’t pass her exam.
  • She didn’t pass her exam despite studying all night.
  • In spite of studying all night, she didn’t pass her exam.
  • She didn’t pass her exam in spite of studying all night.

3. Despite the fact that / In spite of the fact that + SVO

Explain to your students that we have a way, in English, to use despite and in spite of with a Subject-Verb-Object clause. We can add the phrase the fact that. Make sure you point out to your students that this way is not commonly used as it is very formal. They should be aware of it, but they probably won’t use it much. (Note that when I say "SVO," I'm simply referring to a main clause...some verbs do not take a direct object, as with "it was raining.") You can write sentence patterns (c) and (d), and the examples, on the board:

c) Despite the fact that / In spite of the fact that + SVO, + SVO.

Ensure your students notice the use of a comma when we start the sentence with the adverb clause.

  • Despite the fact that it was raining, I didn’t use my umbrella.
  • In spite of the fact that it was raining, I didn’t use my umbrella.

d) SVO + despite the fact that / in spite of the fact that + SVO.

Point out that there is no comma used when we start the sentence with the main clause.

  • I didn’t use my umbrella despite the fact that it was raining.
  • I didn’t use my umbrella in spite of the fact that it was raining.

4. Although / Though / Even though + SVO

Tell your students that all three of these expressions are common, and they essentially have the same meaning. One could argue that there is slightly more emphasis on the unexpected with even though, but I don’t see it as an important distinction, and students already have enough to remember as it is. The choice of which expression to use is theirs, but I often tell students that I tend to use although more than the other two, and I’ve noticed that it appears on the TOEIC test more often as well. Here are some examples to write on the board, along with patterns (e) and (f):

e) Although / Though / Even though + SVO, + SVO.

Reiterate that we need a comma when we start the sentence with an adverb clause.

  • Although it was raining, I didn’t use my umbrella.
  • Though it was raining, I didn’t use my umbrella.
  • Even though it was raining, I didn’t use my umbrella.

f) SVO + although / though / even though + SVO.

Again, make sure your students notice the lack of comma when starting the sentence with the mainvclause.

  • I didn’t use my umbrella although it was raining.
  • I didn’t use my umbrella though it was raining.
  • I didn’t use my umbrella even though it was raining.

Although these structures can be tricky, I hope your students will master them in no time once they see all of these examples! Tanya

PS.

Your students can practice using "despite" in our NEW Climate Change lesson plan. A full lesson plan on Complete Sentences and Adverb Clauses of Contrast is available in our Grammar Practice section.

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Comments (17)

Still Learning Engrish(Guest)

Thank you so much for the post! It's very helpful!

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    Tanya Trusler(Author)

    Happy to hear it!

    Татьяна (Guest)

    And what if a phrase with 'despite / inspite of' is used after ' He said that...'? For example: He said that despite the rain they went out.
    Should we use commas around 'desite the rain'?

    Reply to Comment

    Tanya Trusler(Author)

    I would only use a comma after the 'despite/in spite of' phrase:

    • He said that despite the rain, they went out.

    There's no need to offset reported speech with a comma. Save that for direct speech:

    • He said, 'Despite the rain, we went out.'

    For more examples of direct and reported speech, see this post:
    https://blog.ellii.com/2016/01/21/say-vs-tell-and-other-speaking-verbs/

    YOSHI (Guest)

    I have a question about the following sentence.

    'No wonder the policeman is in conflict from the pressure to choose one evil ( ) a quick decision and his real desire to avoid the issue.'

    This is from a textbook for Japanese high school students.

    For the blank, we have two options :through and despite.
    The textbook says 'through' is the best answer instead of 'despite.'

    Is that because the despite phrase only modifies the main verb 'is'?

    I would really appreciate it if you replied to me.

    Thank you.

    Reply to Comment

    Tanya Trusler(Author)

    Hi Yoshi,

    First of all, that sentence is confusing and difficult to understand, though the meaning of 'through' is slightly better.

    But the choice is not about the main verb. The choice is purely one of meaning. 'Through' in this sense means 'by ways of,' while 'despite' means 'even though something opposite/negative is happening.'

    For example:
    - I learned English through online courses. (= by way of/the method was online courses)
    - We studied for an hour despite the noise. (= even though something negative made it hard to concentrate)

    In your sentence, the meaning '...to choose one evil through a quick decision' (by way of) makes more sense than 'despite' (even though).

    Celeste Clarke(Guest)

    Which of the below are correct? Could you please explain them for me. Thank you very much.
    1) In spite of not having finished the paper, he went to sleep.
    2) In spite of having not finished the paper, he went to sleep.

    Reply to Comment

    Tanya Trusler(Author)

    Hi Celeste,

    Good question. When an English verb has more than one 'part' to it, sometimes an adverb such as 'not' can appear in more than one position (and the meaning stays the same). Sometimes one position is more common. In this case, the first sentence sounds more natural.

    Both your sentences are correct, but 'In spite of not having finished the paper, he went to sleep' is more common and the better choice.

    Jennifer F.(Teacher)

    I would say the first sentence is more correct grammatically. Traditionally this was correct, because to make a negative we change the auxiliary verb and make the auxiliary verb negative - not the main verb. So for that reason, the negative was generally not separated from the auxiliary, and so your grammar books will be teaching "not having finished".
    However, in modern and spoken English, yes we do use "having not finished" and it is so common that it is now seen as perfectly acceptable.

    Tanya Trusler(Author)

    Hi Jennifer, thanks for explaining the history behind these forms. I was especially interested to hear that the second example also sounds common and natural to you. Thanks for sharing!

    Mohamed (Guest)

    Could you please clarify which one is correct?

    1- Despite the general perception of Europa is of a frozen crust of water ice harbouring a salty subterranean ocean kilometres below, researchers say light reflected from the moon’s icy surface bears the spectral fingerprints of hydrogen peroxide and strong acids.

    2- Although the general perception of Europa is of a frozen crust of water ice harbouring a salty subterranean ocean kilometres below, researchers say light reflected from the moon’s icy surface bears the spectral fingerprints of hydrogen peroxide and strong acids.

    Thank you.

    Reply to Comment

    Tanya Trusler(Author)

    Hi Mohamed,

    2 is correct because we can use 'although' before an SVO (subject = the general perception of Europa, verb = is, object = the rest of it). 'Despite' is followed by a noun/noun phrase only and will never have a verb in the clause. Hope that helps!

    Noman John(Guest)

    When when+ing and Although+gerund are used plz let me know the difference between both of them

    Reply to Comment

    Tanya Trusler(Author)

    Hi Noman,

    When + -ing verb is an adverb clause. We use it to show that two actions happen at a similar time. (E.g., When travelling, always keep an eye on your bag.)

    Although + -ing verb isn't very common. We prefer to use the full SVO clause. (E.g., Although growing, the plants wouldn't be ready to sell by June 1.) The meaning is the usual 'unexpected' situation. (E.g., in the example above, we thought the plants would be ready to sell by June 1.)
    Although + gerund is only possible if the gerund is the subject of the clause and would also have the 'unexpected' meaning. (E.g., Although skiing is fun, I didn't ski at all this year.)

    Hope that helps!

    Serene (Guest)

    Dear Tanya,

    Could you please advise if my answer to the question below is correct?

    Qns: We were worried after the doctor had assured us.
    Answer: We were worried despite the doctor assuring us.

    May I know if “the doctor asssuring us” functions as a noun phrase or gerund?

    Thank you! I have learnt a lot from the information you posted above. :)

    Reply to Comment

    Tanya Trusler(Author)

    Hi Serene,

    I'm happy you learned a lot! To answer your question, yes, 'the doctor assuring us' is a noun phrase in your example above. However, I would recommend changing 'assured' to 'reassured' in sentence 1 and 'assuring' to 'reassuring' in sentence 2. The verb 'assure' isn't very common without a noun clause explaining what the assurance was about (e.g., We were worried after the doctor had assured us that nothing was wrong. / We were worried despite the doctor assuring us that nothing was wrong.).

    Serene (Guest)

    Fully understood! Thank you, Tanya!

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