Breakdown of Несмотря на трудности, мы всё же выдерживаем напряжение.
мы
we
трудность
difficulty
несмотря на
despite (+ noun)
всё же
still
Questions & Answers about Несмотря на трудности, мы всё же выдерживаем напряжение.
How does всё же function here, and could I use всё-таки instead?
Yes, you could use всё-таки here. Both act as concessive particles meaning "nevertheless" or "all the same." In this context, всё же emphasizes that the action (выдерживаем) happens contrary to the obstacle mentioned in the first clause. Всё же is sometimes considered slightly softer or more formal than всё-таки, but they are practically interchangeable here.
Why is трудности in this specific case after несмотря на?
The preposition несмотря на (despite) always requires the accusative case. Here, трудности is an inanimate plural noun, so its accusative form is identical to its nominative form.
Is несмотря на always written as one word like this?
It is written as one word (несмотря) when it acts as a preposition meaning "despite." If you mean "without looking at" in a literal physical sense, it acts as a gerund and is written as three separate words: не смотря на (for example, walking without looking at the road).
How does the prefix вы- change the meaning of the base verb держать in выдерживаем?