nonetheless
Americanadverb
Etymology
Origin of nonetheless
First recorded in 1840–50; from the phrase none the less
Compare meaning
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Explanation
This is a word that people don't usually stop and define. They use it to link two seemingly contradictory thoughts. Nonetheless, it does have a definition. It means "in spite of." Break this word up to examine its meaning: None-the-less means that the statement you've just made does not diminish or make less what comes next. We are not at all prepared to climb this mountain, nonetheless we are going to try.
Vocabulary lists containing nonetheless
100 SAT Words Beginning with "N"
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Because of Mr. Terupt
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"A Poem for My Librarian, Mrs. Long," Vocabulary from the poem
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Steffi Cao argues that we should be wary of the algorithm that incentivizes mindless scrolling, but there is nonetheless something charming about the wacky human storytelling that drives these videos.
From Slate ● Sep. 28, 2026
To this list we must add Indian director Satyajit Ray’s 1970 drama “Days and Nights in the Forest,” which does not deposit its cast into a different country but into surroundings that are nonetheless unfamiliar.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
The La Verne battery fire is much smaller in scale but nonetheless alarming for those who had to leave their homes or deal with the closure of schools due to the potential of hazardous fumes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
We all also have plenty of celebrities with idiosyncratic features who nonetheless have the confidence and quelque chose de spécial that makes them irresistible to many.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026
"Earthquakes are generally a precursor of volcanic eruptions, but the park already has lots of earthquakes–1,260 of them last year. Most of them are too small to be felt, but they are earthquakes nonetheless."
From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
