In spite of, equalise (4)
I believe the answer is:
even
I believe this is a double definition.
'in spite of' is the first definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'equalise' is the second definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
(Other definitions for even that I've seen before include "Like 2,4,6, ..." , "Pantomime" , "Flat, regular" , "(Of a number) divisible by 2" , "Plumb" .)