connective N2 common politewritten
にもかかわらず — in spite of
にもかかわらず
Builds on にかかわらず
Meaning
- in spite of ~ / even though ~ — B happens against the grain of A, with a note of surprise or grievance
Key sentence
大雨にもかかわらず、多くの人が集まった。
In spite of the heavy rain, many people gathered.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun or plain-form clause + にもかかわらず | N / [clause] + にもかかわらず | 努力したにもかかわらず / 平日にもかかわらず |
Examples
何度も注意したにもかかわらず、彼は聞かなかった。
Even though I warned him repeatedly, he wouldn't listen.
高い学費にもかかわらず、その学校は人気がある。
Despite the high tuition, that school is popular.
Easily confused with
にかかわらず にもかかわらず (with も) = 'in spite of a specific fact', surprised that B happened anyway; にかかわらず (no も) = 'regardless of a variable', B holds whichever way it goes. 雨にもかかわらず (even though it rained) vs 天候にかかわらず (rain or shine). のに のに is the everyday spoken 'even though' with emotional sting; にもかかわらず is its formal, written counterpart — same 'despite', but neutral and used in reports and essays.
Notes
- The kanji form 〜にも関わらず is also common. Unlike にかかわらず, it can follow a full clause (したにもかかわらず). Standalone それにもかかわらず = 'nevertheless'.
See にもかかわらず in real sentences
Jengo shows にもかかわらず the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled with reference to A Dictionary of Advanced Japanese Grammar, A Dictionary of Intermediate Japanese Grammar.