spite
Americannoun
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a malicious, usually petty, desire to harm, annoy, frustrate, or humiliate another person; bitter ill will; malice.
- Synonyms:
- spleen, venom, rancor, maliciousness, malevolence
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a particular instance of such an attitude or action; grudge.
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Obsolete. something that causes vexation; annoyance.
verb (used with object)
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to treat with spite or malice.
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to annoy or thwart, out of spite.
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to fill with spite; vex; offend.
idioms
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in spite of, in disregard or defiance of; notwithstanding; despite.
She arrived at school on time in spite of the snowstorm.
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cut off one's nose to spite one's face. nose.
noun
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maliciousness involving the desire to harm another; venomous ill will
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an instance of such malice; grudge
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archaic something that induces vexation
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(preposition) in defiance of; regardless of; notwithstanding
verb
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to annoy in order to vent spite
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archaic to offend
Related Words
See grudge. See notwithstanding.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of spite
1250–1300; Middle English; aphetic variant of despite
Explanation
When your sister told you that you looked terrible in your new tube top, she may have been saying it out of spite, or in a deliberately mean or offensive way. The noun spite means "a desire to offend." The word spite can also take the form of a verb, when it's used like this: "He only became a vegetarian to spite his cattle rancher father." Either way, spite implies a grudge, a desire to offend or hurt the feelings of someone by actions or words.
Vocabulary lists containing spite
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
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Beowulf vocabulary
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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.
“In spite of the year-on-year tariff impact and in spite of the macro consumer confidence challenges, I think we performed very well,” Chief Executive Mark Barrocas told Barron’s.
From Barron's • May 6, 2026
But just for spite I'm not going to.
From BBC • Apr. 26, 2026
Single women are buying homes in spite of — not because of — the system.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 24, 2026
This brings us to the third point, that in spite of this investors expect a series of ECB and Bank of England rate rises, while the U.S. stands pat.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 5, 2026
Nobody openly challenged gender boundaries—in spite of the wartime crew cuts and men’s underwear.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
