/ dɪˈspaɪt; NAmE / preposition
1.
used to show that sth happened or is true although sth else might have happened to prevent it
SYN in spite of :
Her voice was shaking despite all her efforts to control it.
Despite applying for hundreds of jobs, he is still out of work.
She was good at physics despite the fact that she found it boring.
2.
despite yourself used to show that sb did not intend to do the thing mentioned
SYN in spite of :
He had to laugh despite himself.
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WORD ORIGIN
Middle English (originally used as a noun meaning contempt, scorn in the phrase in despite of ): from Old French despit , from Latin despectus looking down on, past participle (used as a noun) of despicere , from de- down + specere look at.