～にもかかわらず: How to Say "In Spite Of" Formally in Japanese

～にもかかわらず is the formal Japanese way to say "in spite of" or "despite." It marks a result that runs contrary to what a situation would lead you to expect.¹ It is the written, objective counterpart to the colloquial のに. An N2 learner who already controls のに and ても uses it when the register turns to essays, reports, or formal speech.²

Overview

にもかかわらず expresses a contrast between an expected result and the actual outcome: "despite a certain situation A, an unexpected result B occurred."¹ It marks a 逆接 (gyakusetsu, a "reverse" or adversative connection, like "although" or "however"). In this pattern, the B clause states a fact that contradicts what A would normally predict.²

The pattern normally describes matters that have already happened or that are true at the time of speaking. It does not usually describe hypothetical future events.²

What にもかかわらず means

The cleanest gloss is "X happens or holds, yet Y, contrary to what X would lead you to expect." The A clause sets up an expectation. The B clause overturns it.

一生懸命いっしょうけんめい勉強べんきょうしたにもかかわらず、行いきたかった大学だいがくの試験しけんに落おちてしまった。³⁴
"In spite of having studied hard, I failed the entrance exam for the university I wanted to attend."

努力どりょくしたにもかかわらず、結果けっかは出でなかった。⁵
"Despite my efforts, no results came of it."

警告けいこくを受うけたにもかかわらず、彼かれは同おなじ過あやまちを繰くり返かえした。⁶
"In spite of having received a warning, he repeated the same mistake."

Structurally, にもかかわらず is a 連語 (a fixed compound) that works as a concessive conjunction, a connector meaning "although" or "despite." It also appears attached to a noun as a 複合格助詞 (compound case-marking phrase) built on the に particle.¹

Register: formal, objective, written

にもかかわらず is a 硬い言い方 (a stiff, formal expression) belonging to 書き言葉 (written language). It is the formal counterpart to the colloquial のに.²³⁷

Its natural habitats are essays, reports, news writing, and formal speech.²⁷

Unlike のに, にもかかわらず does not by itself carry blame or criticism. It is basically an objective expression that simply states the adversative relation.²

Objective by default, not emotionless

Because the phrase contains the focus particle も (取り立て助詞), the speaker's feeling can still surface in context. The Japan Foundation cites 私があれだけ言ったにもかかわらず、彼は非行に走ってしまった ("Although I told him that much, he ended up turning to delinquency"), where the speaker's regret and reproach come through. Objective is the default, not an absolute.²

The Japan Foundation's comparative chart places にもかかわらず among the 逆接 family alongside ながら(も), ものの, and にかかわらず. In that family, にもかかわらず is marked as both 硬い (formal) and 客観的 (objective). This sets it apart from the more emotionally charged or more literary alternatives.²

How it attaches

にもかかわらず connects differently depending on the word class before it. Verbs and い-adjectives use their plain form. Nouns and な-adjectives connect through the copula である in formal text.³⁷⁸

Attach table

Word class	Attachment	Example
Noun	Noun + にもかかわらず (である optional in formal text)	雨にもかかわらず / 雨であるにもかかわらず
Noun (formal)	Noun + である + にもかかわらず	学生であるにもかかわらず
Verb	Plain form (普通形) + にもかかわらず	勉強したにもかかわらず
い-adjective	Plain form + にもかかわらず	忙しいにもかかわらず
な-adjective	な-adjective stem + である + にもかかわらず	不便であるにもかかわらず

For nouns and な-adjectives, である is the formal connector. Bunpro marks である as standard for な-adjectives and optional for nouns, shown in parentheses.⁸ A bare noun + にもかかわらず is also common and attested, as in 雨にもかかわらず.⁷

Verbs and い-adjectives take the 普通形 (plain form): する becomes したにもかかわらず, and 忙しい becomes 忙しいにもかかわらず.³

本日ほんじつは雨天うてんにもかかわらず、大勢おおぜいの方かたがお集あつまりくださり、本当ほんとうにありがとうございます。⁷
"Thank you very much to everyone who gathered here today despite the rain."

学生がくせいであるにもかかわらず、彼かれは高級車こうきゅうしゃを乗のり回まわしている。⁹
"Even though he is (just) a student, he drives a luxury car around."

交通こうつうが不便ふべんであるにもかかわらず、その町まちには多おおくの観光客かんこうきゃくが訪おとずれる。¹⁰
"Despite the transport being inconvenient, many tourists visit that town."

忙いそがしいにもかかわらず、友達ともだちがお見舞みまいに来きてくれた。¹¹²
"Even though they were busy, my friend came to visit me in the hospital."

Where it sits in the sentence

Inside a sentence, にもかかわらず joins a subordinate A clause to a main B clause in the shape A にもかかわらず、B.³⁷

It can also open a sentence. それにもかかわらず begins a new sentence with the meaning "nevertheless" or "and yet." It picks up the entire preceding sentence as its A.¹⁷ The bare form にもかかわらず, without それ, is also attested at the start of a sentence with the same backward-pointing sense.⁷

当日とうじつは激はげしい雨あめが降ふっていた。それにもかかわらず、レースは行おこなわれた。⁷
"It was raining heavily that day. Nevertheless, the race was held."

彼かれは三さんか月げつ前まえの試合しあいで指ゆびを骨折こっせつした。それにもかかわらず、今回こんかいも優勝ゆうしょうした。⁷
"He broke his finger in a match three months ago. Nevertheless, he won the championship this time too."

この場所ばしょでは喫煙きつえんが禁止きんしされている。にもかかわらず、たばこを吸すっている人ひとを見みかける。⁷
"Smoking is prohibited in this area. Nevertheless, you still see people smoking."

Nuance and usage contexts

Three points often trip up learners at this level: how にもかかわらず differs from のに, how the も separates it from にかかわらず, and how それにもかかわらず works as a connective. Each turns on a single distinction.

にもかかわらず vs のに

のに and にもかかわらず share the same logic: both express 逆接, "even though A, B happens against expectation." The difference is register and attitude. のに is 話し言葉 (colloquial); にもかかわらず is 書き言葉 (written and formal).²³

The attitude differs too. のに carries the speaker's 驚き・不満・非難 (surprise, dissatisfaction, or reproach) toward the unexpected outcome. にもかかわらず states the adversative relation objectively and, by default, does not carry blame or criticism.²

Feature	のに	にもかかわらず
Register	Colloquial (話し言葉)	Formal, written (書き言葉)
Objectivity	Subjective	Objective by default
Tone	Surprise, dissatisfaction, reproach	Neutral statement of the contrast
Typical use	Conversation	Essays, reports, news, formal speech

The Japan Foundation puts it precisely: にもかかわらず is "like のに" in presenting a situation that conflicts with the prediction from the first clause, "but unlike のに, no feeling of reproach or criticism enters."²

約束やくそくしたのに、彼かれは来こなかった。¹²²
"Even though he promised, he didn't come." (tinged with the speaker's annoyance)

事前じぜんに合意ごういしたにもかかわらず、相手側あいてがわは契約けいやくに応おうじなかった。¹³²
"Despite having agreed beforehand, the other party did not enter into the contract." (a neutral report)

にもかかわらず vs にかかわらず

The も is the hinge.¹⁴ にもかかわらず means "despite a specific fact," with a result that runs contrary to expectation. にかかわらず means "regardless of." The A condition does not affect the outcome, and no contrary-to-expectation result follows.¹⁴¹⁵

Feature	にもかかわらず	にかかわらず
Meaning	Despite, in spite of	Regardless of, whether or not
Contrary result	Yes, B runs against expectation	No, A simply does not affect B
Typical A	A single specific fact	Opposing pairs or range nouns
Example	雨であるにもかかわらず	天候にかかわらず

にかかわらず and its variant にかかわりなく mean 〜に関係なく ("without relation to"). They attach to opposing pairs such as 男女 or 有無 and to range nouns such as 金額, 距離, or 天候.¹⁵ A useful test: if you can add "but something surprising still happened," you want にもかかわらず. If you mean "it makes no difference either way," you want にかかわらず.¹⁴

天候てんこうにかかわらず、試合しあいは行おこなわれます。¹⁵
"The match will be held regardless of the weather."

雨あめであるにもかかわらず、試合しあいは行おこなわれた。¹⁵
"Despite it being rainy, the match was held."

年齢ねんれいにかかわらず、この仕事しごとには応募おうぼできます。¹⁴
"You can apply for this job regardless of age."

を問わず is the close sibling of にかかわらず. It also means "regardless of" or "irrespective of." It pairs most naturally with nouns that offer a clear set of alternatives, such as 性別, 天気, or 有無.¹⁵

経験けいけんの有無うむを問とわず、応募おうぼを受うけ付つけます。¹⁵
"We accept applications regardless of whether you have experience or not."

それにもかかわらず as a connective

それにもかかわらず is the fixed sentence-opener meaning "nevertheless," "and yet," or "even so." それ ("that") refers back to the entire preceding sentence. にもかかわらず adds the adversative turn.¹⁷

It splits a concessive across two sentences when the A content is too long or too independent to fit inside a single A にもかかわらず、B clause.⁷ Like にもかかわらず itself, it is formal and written. In conversation, でも or それでも is the everyday equivalent.²⁷

戦争せんそうの悲惨ひさんさは誰だれもが知しっている。それにもかかわらず、戦争せんそうはこの世よからなくならない。⁷
"Everyone knows the misery of war. Nevertheless, war never disappears from this world."

医師いしに何度なんども忠告ちゅうこくされた。それにもかかわらず、彼かれは喫煙きつえんをやめなかった。¹⁶
"He was warned by his doctor many times. Nevertheless, he did not quit smoking."

厳きびしい寒さむさが続つづいた。それにもかかわらず、桜さくらは例年れいねんどおり咲さいた。¹⁷
"The severe cold continued. Nevertheless, the cherry blossoms bloomed on schedule as in other years."

Good to know

Where にもかかわらず comes from: 関わる + かからず

にもかかわらず breaks down as the compound にも plus the verb かかわる in its irrealis stem (未然形) かかわら plus the classical negative auxiliary ず. Together, this gives "(also) not being concerned with" or "not bound by."¹ The relevant sense of かかわる is "to be constrained by an outside force; to be subject to it," recorded as sense ③ in 日本国語大辞典.¹⁸ So かかわらず means "not constrained by," and にもかかわらず means "without even being subject to the fact that A." From there, "in spite of A" follows. デジタル大辞泉 lists the same verb under "to have a relation" and "to be affected."¹⁹

This single etymology explains both branches a learner meets. The "despite" branch (にもかかわらず) reads as "not bound even by A, so A happened, yet B." The "regardless of" branch (にかかわらず) reads as "not bound by A, so A makes no difference."

The kanji form 関わらず and why hiragana is safer

The phrase is written three ways: にもかかわらず in kana, にも関わらず with 関, and にも拘わらず with 拘. The prescriptively "correct" kanji for the こだわらない sense is 拘. But 拘 in this reading sits outside the 常用漢字 table as a 表外読み (a reading outside the official list), so official and edited Japanese writes it in kana.²⁰

The rule is shared across 公用文 (official documents), 新聞表記 (newspaper style), and NHK表記 (broadcasting style): write かかわらず in hiragana for this grammatical use.²⁰ 関わる is the correct kanji when the verb means "to be involved" or "to relate to," as in 研究に関わる. But for the fixed concessive pattern, kana is the edited-text default.²⁰

Don't reach for にもかかわらず in casual speech

にもかかわらず is a 硬い 書き言葉 (stiff, written-language) expression. In everyday conversation, it sounds stilted. Use のに or ても for "even though" when speaking casually, and reserve にもかかわらず for essays, reports, news, and formal speech.²³⁷

The error here is matching a 書き言葉 (written-language) form to a 話し言葉 (spoken-language) context. Saying 約束したにもかかわらず、来なかったよ to a friend is too stiff for the setting. The natural colloquial version is below.²³

約束やくそくしたのに、来こなかったよ。²¹
"Even though they promised, they didn't come."

The noun trap: 学生にもかかわらず needs no である, but the rule is subtle

For な-adjectives, である is required: 不便であるにもかかわらず, not 不便にもかかわらず. For nouns, である is optional. Both 雨にもかかわらず and 雨であるにもかかわらず occur, with the bare-noun form common and である adding formality.⁷⁸

The common learner error is dropping である after a な-adjective. Writing 真面目にもかかわらず、評価されない is incorrect because the な-adjective 真面目 needs the copula to connect.⁸

真面目まじめであるにもかかわらず、評価ひょうかされない。²²
"Despite being diligent, they are not appreciated."

A quick way to remember the split: verbs and い-adjectives plug in bare, while nouns and な-adjectives bring である as their adapter. Plain (普通形) predicates attach directly. The copula-bearing classes need である to connect.⁸²³

See also

• のに: How to Say "Even Though" with Frustration in Japanese (Counter-Expectational)
• ～ものの: "Although / Even Though" in Japanese
• The ～ながら Form in Japanese: Doing Two Things at Once (and the Concessive ～ながら(も))
• ～ても: How to Say "Even If" and "Even Though" in Japanese
• ～にしても: How to Say "Even Considering" or "Regardless Of" in Japanese (高いにしても買う)
• The Japanese Copula: です, だ, である Explained

References

Footnotes

1. 三省堂『大辞林』 / 小学館『デジタル大辞泉』, "にもかかわらず" entry, accessed via Weblio 国語辞典. https://www.weblio.jp/content/%E3%81%AB%E3%82%82%E3%81%8B%E3%81%8B%E3%82%8F%E3%82%89%E3%81%9A ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

2. 国際交流基金 (The Japan Foundation). 日本語教育通信「文法を楽しく」第30回「表現意図 ―逆接―」. https://www.jpf.go.jp/j/project/japanese/teach/tsushin/grammar/201703.html ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷

3. 日本語NET.「【JLPT N２】文法・例文：〜にもかかわらず」, citing placement in the textbooks 『できる日本語 中級』(課16), 『中級へのとびら / 上級へのとびら』(課9), and 『まるごと 中級1』(課4). https://nihongokyoshi-net.com/2019/05/17/jlptn2-grammar-nimokakawarazu/ ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸

4. Natural sentence verified against 日本語NET, which gives this example for にもかかわらず.³ ↩

5. Natural sentence constructed to illustrate verb (普通形) + にもかかわらず; pattern attested in ³⁷. ↩

6. Natural sentence constructed to illustrate verb (普通形) + にもかかわらず; pattern attested in ⁷⁸. ↩

7. MLC Japanese Language School (Tokyo). "JLPT N2 grammar: ～にもかかわらず." https://www.mlcjapanese.co.jp/n2_04_04.html ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹

8. Bunpro. "にもかかわらず (JLPT N2)." Grammar reference page. https://bunpro.jp/grammar_points/%E3%81%AB%E3%82%82%E3%81%8B%E3%81%8B%E3%82%8F%E3%82%89%E3%81%9A (limitation) ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

9. Natural sentence constructed to illustrate noun + である + にもかかわらず; pattern attested in ³⁷⁸. ↩

10. Natural sentence constructed to illustrate な-adjective + である + にもかかわらず; pattern attested in ⁸. ↩

11. Natural sentence adapted from the Japan Foundation discussion of how the focus particle も lets gratitude surface (友達が見舞いに来てくれた); pattern and reading attested in ². ↩

12. Natural sentence constructed to illustrate colloquial のに with subjective annoyance; the register/attitude contrast is attested in ². ↩

13. Natural sentence constructed to illustrate formal/objective にもかかわらず in a neutral report; the register/objectivity contrast is attested in ². ↩

14. Enuncia. "JLPT N2 Grammar – Difference between 〜にかかわらず and 〜にもかかわらず." https://enuncia.online/en/2025/06/09/blog250/ (limitation) ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

15. たのすけ (tanosuke).「【N2文法解説】～にかかわりなく／～にかかわらず」. https://tanosuke.com/nikakawarinaku/ (limitation) ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

16. Natural sentence constructed to illustrate それにもかかわらず as a sentence-initial connective; pattern attested in ¹⁷. ↩

17. Natural sentence constructed to illustrate それにもかかわらず as a sentence-initial connective; pattern attested in ⁷. ↩

18. 小学館『精選版 日本国語大辞典』, "かかわる（係わる・関わる）" entry, accessed via Kotobank. https://kotobank.jp/word/%E4%BF%82%E3%82%8F%E3%82%8B-2020350 ↩

19. 小学館『デジタル大辞泉』 and 三省堂『大辞林』, "かかわる（関わる・係わる）" entry, accessed via Weblio 国語辞典. https://www.weblio.jp/content/%E9%96%A2%E3%82%8F%E3%82%8B ↩

20. ことばのエチュード (e-kotobano).「『かかわらず』はなぜひらがな？」, citing the shared 公用文・新聞・NHK orthography rule. https://e-kotobano.com/3603/ ↩ ↩² ↩³

21. Natural incorrect/correct pair constructed to illustrate the register-mismatch error class; the 書き言葉 vs 話し言葉 distinction is attested in ²³. ↩

22. Natural incorrect/correct pair constructed to illustrate the missing-である error on a な-adjective; the である attach rule is attested in ⁸. ↩

23. Mnemonic constructed from the attach rule; the rule (plain form for verbs/い-adjectives, である for nouns/な-adjectives) is attested in ⁸. ↩