Although, in spite of, despite

Although and even though

Although and even though have a similar meaning to despite and in spite of.

Meanings - We use all of these words to say that a thing is surprising, unusual or unexpected
in relation to another thing. This is called concession.
Even though is a slightly stronger form of 'although'.
Although and though have the same meaning and are interchangeable in most cases.
‘Though’ is less formal than ‘although’.

‘Though’ can also be used as an adverb, means ‘however’: “He took my newspaper. I don’t
mind, though."

Use - While the meaning of these words is similar, there is a difference in how we use them.
Although and even though are conjunctions. They have the same meaning. Even though is a
little stronger than although.
We use these structures:
 although + a clause
 even though + a clause

These are followed by a subject and a verb.

 Although/even though it was raining, she walked to the station.
 Although/even though he had enough money, he refused to buy a new car.
 Although/even though Amy was wearing glasses, she couldn't read the notice.
 Although/even though he disapproved, he said nothing.
 Although/even though Jack had worked hard, he failed the exam.

Despite and in spite of

Use - These are prepositions, and have the same meaning. They are used with these
structures:
 despite + noun
 despite + verb + -ing
 in spite of + a noun
 in spite of + verb + -ing
Despite and in spite of are followed by a noun, a pronoun or a verb ending in -ing.
(The gerund, a verb ending in -ing, is the 'noun' form of a verb.)

Despite/in spite of have the same meaning, but despite is used without 'of'.

 Despite / in spite of the rain he walked to the station.

 He noticed the rain but he walked to the station in spite of it.
 Despite being wet and tired, he walked to the station.
 He decided to go sailing despite /in spite of the bad weather conditions.

The examples below show us that although / even though and despite / in spite of are
similar in meaning, but are used differently.

although, even though despite, in spite of

(+ clause) (+ verb + -ing)

Even though he's a millionaire, he lives in Despite / in spite of being a millionaire,

a very small flat. he lives in a very small flat.

He lives in a very small flat even He lives in a very small flat despite / in
though he's a millionaire. spite of being a millionaire.

Although / even though he's much older Despite / in spite of being much older than
than the others, he won the race. the others, he won the race.

He won the race although / even He won the race despite / in spite of being
though he's much older than the others. much older than the others.

Even though / although it rained a lot, I Despite / in spite of the rain, I enjoyed the
enjoyed the holiday. holiday.

Even though / although they have a lot of Despite / in spite of their money, they're
money, they're still not happy. still not happy.

Fill the gap in each sentence with despite, in spite of, although or even though.
(Answers are also given here.)

1 we are a small company, we sell almost a hundred machines a

month.
Correct answer: Although/Even though

2 all the difficulties, the project started on time and was a success.

Correct answer: Despite/In spite of

3 we were warned against doing so, we went ahead with the

project.
Correct answer: Although/Even though

4 his lack of experience, he became a successful businessman.

Correct answer: Despite/In spite of

5 being by far the oldest player, he scored three goals.

Correct answer: Despite/In spite of

6 he's a millionaire, he drives a second-hand car.

Correct answer: Although/Even though

7 it rained a lot, I enjoyed the holiday.

Correct answer: Although/Even though

8 working for the company for six months now, he never seems to

know what to do.

Correct answer: Despite/In spite of

Reference:
https://speakspeak.com/resources/english-grammar-rules/various-grammar-rules/although-
even-though
https://www.learn-english-today.com/lessons/lesson_contents/grammar/although-despite.html