tempest
/ˈtɛm.pəst/
"tempest" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“tempest” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #19,984 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #19,984
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 11
- tracked misspellings
- 4
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A storm, especially one with severe winds.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | tempest |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈtɛm.pəst/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #19,984 |
| Misspellings tracked | 11 |
| Confusable pairs | 4 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “tempest” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for tempest is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈtɛm.pəst/. Corpus data places it at rank #19,984 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for tempest, with forms such as "etmpest", "temepst", and "temmpest". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "tempt", "temples", "Tempe", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Old French tempeste (French tempête), from Latin tempestas (“storm”), from tempus (“time, weather”). The correct English form is tempest, spelled T-E-M-P-E-S-T.
Definition
- 1A storm, especially one with severe winds.
- 2Any violent tumult or commotion.
- 3A fashionable social gathering; a drum.
Etymology
From Old French tempeste (French tempête), from Latin tempestas (“storm”), from tempus (“time, weather”).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: etmpest,temepst,temmpest,tempesst,tempestt,tempets,temppest,tempset,tepmest,tmepest,ttempest
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of tempest - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “tempest”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-E-M-P-E-S-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈtɛm.pəst/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “tempt” - see the side-by-side comparison. tempest vs tempt
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.