What does tempest mean?
Word: Tempest
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Tempest means a very strong storm, a word used mostly in stories and poems.
Synonyms: storm, gale
Word origin: From Old French tempeste, from Latin tempestas.
How do you spell tempest?
Syllables: tem - pest
Tricky part: The second vowel is weak, so students write tempist or tempast.
Watch out for: tempist, tempast, tempust
Memory tip: A tempest is the toughest test for any sailor: toughest and test both carry the same e.
Tempest in a sentence
Example 1: The evening tempest tore the bright banners from the school gate.
Example 2: A tempest swept across the bay and kept the ferries in harbour for two days.
Example 3: The painting shows a tiny boat riding a tempest of grey waves.
Fun Fact
Shakespeare's play The Tempest opens with a ship caught in a storm at sea, and much of the story follows on a remote island.
Practise the CREST Way
Spellacadabra
Choose the correct option to make a meaningful word:
te____est
a) np
b) mp
c) mb
d) nb
Show answer
b) mp. Before a p the sound is m, as in lamp and jump.
Back to the Roots
Choose the correct option:
Latin tempestas grew from tempus. What did tempus mean?
a) wind
b) time
c) thunder
d) water
Show answer
b) time. Tempus meant time or season, which also gave English the word temporary.
Word Puzzle
Match each word with its meaning:
1. tempest 2. drizzle 3. haze a. a thin mist that blurs the view b. a fine, light rain c. wild weather with howling winds
a) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b
b) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a
c) 1-a, 2-b, 3-c
d) 1-b, 2-a, 3-c
Show answer
b) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a. Wild weather is a tempest, fine rain is drizzle and a thin mist is haze.
Spell Spies
Choose the pair which has a spelling error:
a) ancient : modern
b) tempest : calm
c) fragile : sturdy
d) scarce : plentifull
Show answer
d) scarce : plentifull. The ending ful has only one l.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. In which piece of writing would you most expect to find the word tempest?
a) a bank form
b) a poem about the sea
c) a weekly shopping list
d) a bus timetable
Show answer
b) a poem about the sea
2. With a tempest on its way, what would harbour officials most sensibly do?
a) repaint the lighthouse
b) keep small boats tied up
c) send boats further out
d) open a market on the pier
Show answer
b) keep small boats tied up
