Despite / In spite of vs. Although / Even though – English Grammar Exercises for B2
A tech YouTuber is reviewing a newly released flagship smartphone, evaluating the ultimate “trade-off” between its exorbitant cost and its premium features.
Choose the best option (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence from the tech review.
1 “______ its exorbitant price tag, this new flagship phone is absolutely worth every single penny.”
(A) Although
(B) In spite of
(C) Even though
(D) Despite of
2 “______ it costs as much as a used car, the computational photography system is truly revolutionary.”
(A) Even though
(B) Despite
(C) In spite of
(D) Despite of
3 “______ costing well over $1,500, the device completely sold out within minutes of its global launch.”
(A) Although
(B) Even though
(C) Despite
(D) Because
4 “______ the fact that you will need to empty your savings account, I highly recommend upgrading this year.”
(A) In spite of
(B) Although
(C) Even though
(D) Despite of
5 “I strongly suggest buying the high-end ‘Pro’ model ______ the massive financial investment it requires.”
(A) although
(B) even though
(C) despite
(D) despite of
6 “The battery life is surprisingly average, ______ the manufacturer claims it will last for two full days.”
(A) despite
(B) in spite of
(C) although
(D) despite of
7 “______ its incredibly fragile glass back, the overall build quality feels extremely premium in the hand.”
(A) Even though
(B) Although
(C) Because of
(D) In spite of
8 “______ completely lacking a charger in the box, it remains the best overall smartphone package of the year.”
(A) Despite
(B) Although
(C) Even though
(D) In spite
9 “You should definitely get the 1TB storage option, ______ it seems like a ridiculous amount of money right now.”
(A) despite
(B) in spite of
(C) even though
(D) regardless
10 “______ the undeniably heavy weight of the device, it sits very comfortably when held in one hand.”
(A) Although
(B) Despite
(C) Even though
(D) Despite of
11 “The phone delivers flawless, sustained gaming performance ______ the fact that it has no active cooling fan.”
(A) although
(B) even though
(C) despite
(D) despite of
12 “______ the new operating system still has a few minor bugs, the daily user experience is buttery smooth.”
(A) Although
(B) In spite of
(C) Despite
(D) Despite of
13 “______ a rather controversial and massive camera bump design, this model is undeniably stunning to look at.”
(A) Although
(B) In spite of
(C) Even though
(D) Despite of
14 “______ being the most expensive tech gadget on the market, it offers the highest return on investment for professional content creators.”
(A) Although
(B) Even though
(C) Despite
(D) In spite
15 “I literally cannot stop using the 10x telephoto lens, ______ I initially thought it was just a silly marketing gimmick.”
(A) despite
(B) in spite of
(C) even though
(D) because of
16 “______ the notoriously steep learning curve of the software, you will absolutely love it once you get used to the gestures.”
(A) Despite
(B) Although
(C) Even though
(D) Despite of
17 “______ the fact that it doesn’t fold or flip, this classic ‘slab’ phone still manages to feel incredibly futuristic.”
(A) Although
(B) Even though
(C) In spite of
(D) Despite of
18 “______ the fast-charging speed is slightly disappointing compared to rivals, the overall battery health will last much longer.”
(A) Despite
(B) In spite of
(C) Although
(D) Despite of
19 “______ the annoying lack of a headphone jack, the spatial audio quality from the dual stereo speakers is breathtaking.”
(A) Although
(B) In spite of
(C) Even though
(D) Despite of
20 “______ having to pay extra for the proprietary protective case, I still stand by my verdict that this is a must-buy.”
(A) Although
(B) Even though
(C) Despite
(D) In spite
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (B) In spite of
- Why it is correct: A multi-word preposition that perfectly precedes the noun phrase “its exorbitant price tag”. It allows the reviewer to quickly mention the cost before emphasizing the value.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (C) Structural Error: Conjunctions must be followed by a full subject and verb clause (e.g., Although the price tag is exorbitant). (D) Common Mistake: “Despite of” is grammatically invalid.
2 (A) Even though
- Why it is correct: “Even though” is a subordinating conjunction that connects the main clause to a full dependent clause (“it costs as much as a used car”).
- Distractor Analysis: (B) & (C) Structural Error: Prepositions cannot be followed directly by a full subject-verb clause. (D) Common Mistake.
3 (C) Despite
- Why it is correct: “Despite” is a preposition correctly followed by the gerund (V-ing) phrase “costing well over $1,500”.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (B) Structural Error: Conjunctions require a subject and a conjugated verb (e.g., Although it costs…). (D) Meaning Trap: “Because” ruins the logic of overcoming an obstacle.
4 (A) In spite of
- Why it is correct: Correctly uses the grammatical bridge “the fact that” to link the preposition to the full clause (“you will need to empty your savings account”).
- Distractor Analysis: (B) & (C) Structural Error: “Although the fact that” is redundant and grammatically incorrect. Conjunctions connect to clauses directly. (D) Common Mistake: “Despite of” does not exist in English.
5 (C) despite
- Why it is correct: Directly precedes the noun phrase “the massive financial investment it requires”.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (B) Structural Error: Require a full clause with a subject and verb. (D) Structural Error: “Despite” never takes “of”.
6 (C) although
- Why it is correct: Connects the independent clause to the dependent clause containing a subject and verb (“the manufacturer claims it will last”).
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (B) Structural Error: Prepositions cannot be followed by a full clause. (D) Common Mistake.
7 (D) In spite of
- Why it is correct: Introduces the noun phrase “its incredibly fragile glass back”.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (B) Structural Error: Must be followed by a full clause. (C) Meaning Trap: “Because of” indicates cause, removing the element of contrast.
8 (A) Despite
- Why it is correct: A preposition correctly followed by the gerund phrase “completely lacking a charger in the box”.
- Distractor Analysis: (B) & (C) Structural Error: Conjunctions require a subject and a conjugated verb. (D) Structural Error: Missing “of”.
9 (C) even though
- Why it is correct: Connects the main clause to the dependent subject-verb clause (“it seems like a ridiculous amount of money right now”).
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (B) Structural Error: Prepositions cannot be followed by a full clause. (D) Structural Error: “Regardless” requires the preposition “of”.
10 (B) Despite
- Why it is correct: Introduces the long noun phrase “the undeniably heavy weight of the device”.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (C) Structural Error: Require a full clause. (D) Common Mistake: “Despite of” is invalid.
11 (C) despite
- Why it is correct: “Despite” correctly precedes the noun phrase “the fact”, which acts as a grammatical bridge to allow the subsequent “that” clause.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (B) Structural Error: “Although the fact that” is redundant. (D) Structural Error: “Despite of” is incorrect.
12 (A) Although
- Why it is correct: Connects the dependent clause (“the new operating system still has a few minor bugs”) to the independent main clause.
- Distractor Analysis: (B) & (C) Structural Error: Prepositions cannot directly precede a full clause. (D) Common Mistake.
13 (B) In spite of
- Why it is correct: A preposition correctly followed by the noun phrase “a rather controversial and massive camera bump design”.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (C) Structural Error: Require a full clause. (D) Structural Error: “Despite of” is invalid.
14 (C) Despite
- Why it is correct: Correctly followed by the passive gerund phrase “being the most expensive tech gadget on the market”.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (B) Structural Error: Require a subject and a conjugated verb (e.g., Although it is…). (D) Structural Error: Missing “of”.
15 (C) even though
- Why it is correct: Introduces the dependent clause with a subject (“I”) and a verb (“thought”).
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (B) Structural Error: Prepositions cannot be followed by a full clause. (D) Meaning Trap: “Because of” destroys the contrast.
16 (A) Despite
- Why it is correct: Directly precedes the noun phrase “the notoriously steep learning curve of the software”.
- Distractor Analysis: (B) & (C) Structural Error: Must be followed by a full clause. (D) Common Mistake.
17 (C) In spite of
- Why it is correct: Uses the grammatical bridge “the fact that” to link the preposition to the full clause (“it doesn’t fold or flip”).
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (B) Structural Error: Conjunctions connect to clauses directly without needing “the fact that”. (D) Common Mistake.
18 (C) Although
- Why it is correct: Used with a full clause (“the fast-charging speed is slightly disappointing…”).
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (B) Structural Error: Cannot be followed directly by a full clause. (D) Common Mistake.
19 (B) In spite of
- Why it is correct: Introduces the noun phrase “the annoying lack of a headphone jack”.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (C) Structural Error: Must be followed by a full clause. (D) Common Mistake: “Despite of” is invalid.
20 (C) Despite
- Why it is correct: A preposition correctly introducing the gerund phrase “having to pay extra for the proprietary protective case”.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) & (B) Structural Error: Conjunctions require a subject and verb (e.g., Even though you have to pay…). (D) Structural Error: Missing “of”.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
When reviewing a product, pitching a business idea, or persuading someone to make an expensive choice, you must address the “pain point” (the cost, the learning curve, the flaw) before highlighting the value.
- The “Gloss Over” Technique (Despite / In spite of + Noun Phrase):
- Use prepositions to compress the negative trade-off into a quick Noun Phrase.
- Example: “Despite the high cost, the camera is flawless.”
- Why it works: It acknowledges the barrier but doesn’t dwell on it, moving the viewer’s attention quickly to the positive selling point.
- Using Gerunds to Soften Actions (Despite + V-ing):
- Example: “In spite of paying a premium, you get the best device available.”
- The “Fact That” Bridge:
- If you want the punchy rhythm of Despite but have a full sentence to deliver, use the bridge: Despite the fact that…
- The Ultimate Grammar Trap:
- NEVER write “Despite of“.
- Remember: In spite uses three words (In spite of). Despite stands completely alone.