spite

American  

[spahyt] / spaɪt /

noun

1. a malicious, usually petty, desire to harm, annoy, frustrate, or humiliate another person; bitter ill will; malice.

   Synonyms:

   spleen, venom, rancor, maliciousness, malevolence

2. a particular instance of such an attitude or action; grudge.

3. Obsolete. something that causes vexation; annoyance.

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verb (used with object)

spited, spiting

1. to treat with spite or malice.

2. to annoy or thwart, out of spite.

3. to fill with spite; vex; offend.

idioms

1. in spite of, in disregard or defiance of; notwithstanding; despite.

   She arrived at school on time in spite of the snowstorm.

2. cut off one's nose to spite one's face. nose.

spite British  

/ spaɪt /

noun

1. maliciousness involving the desire to harm another; venomous ill will

2. an instance of such malice; grudge

3. archaic something that induces vexation

4. (preposition) in defiance of; regardless of; notwithstanding

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verb

1. to annoy in order to vent spite

2. archaic to offend

spite More Idioms  

1. see in spite of.

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Related Words

See grudge. See notwithstanding.

Other Word Forms

• spiteless adjective
• unspited adjective

Etymology

Origin of spite

1250–1300; Middle English; aphetic variant of despite

Example Sentences

"This organisation provides stability and predictability," she added, hailing that "in spite of all the knocks, it is still the bedrock for so much of world trade".

From Barron's

And, in spite of my rock-hard heart and its resolution, I felt a lump of sadness coming up from my chest into my throat.

From Literature

“In spite of what the AG’s office says, document production is not complete.”

From Salon

In spite of his growing fear, Jonathan smiled.

From Literature

Some AI tools are also reported to be completely ineffective in spite of their price tag.

From Salon