Nonetheless

Nonetheless

Adverb (conjunctive) · /ˌnʌn.ðə.ˈles/

Definition

In spite of that; nevertheless; notwithstanding what has just been said; used to introduce a statement that contrasts with or qualifies what has just been said, while conceding its truth.

Origin

A compound of none + the + less — none the less — meaning not any the less, not diminished by that. From Old English nan (none: na + an, not + one) + þe (the: used in Old English in comparative constructions, as in 'the less, the more') + læssa (less: comparative of lytel, little). The phrase none the less appearing as three separate words in Old English and Middle English, gradually merging into nonetheless as a single word. The structure being a frozen comparative construction: the less, the more, the better — with the definite article used instrumentally, indicating degree of change. Nonetheless therefore meaning 'not one degree the less' — not reduced in any degree by what has been said.