tempest
Americannoun
-
a violent windstorm, especially one with rain, hail, or snow.
-
a violent commotion, disturbance, or tumult.
verb (used with object)
idioms
noun
-
literary a violent wind or storm
-
a violent commotion, uproar, or disturbance
verb
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of tempest
1200–50; Middle English tempeste < Old French < Vulgar Latin *tempesta, for Latin tempestās season, weather, storm, equivalent to tempes- (variant stem of tempus time) + -tās -ty 2
Explanation
Shakespeare's The Tempest begins with one — a tempest, or a violent and windy storm. The meaning of tempest has expanded over time to include the idea of anger or fighting. A "tempest in a tea pot" means a passionate fight over something that is in fact fairly trivial. For example, a loud argument about whether to use cloth or paper napkins at Thanksgiving could be considered a "tempest in a tea pot" to some.
Vocabulary lists containing tempest
"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act I
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"The Raven"
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The Tempest
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Haiti's Civil Protection Agency reported two people died and another was injured Thursday when the tempest triggered a landslide in the west of the island nation.
From Barron's ● Oct. 25, 2025
For those not chronically online, however, this past week’s tempest over Wikipedia can be jolting—especially given the site’s objective to remain trustworthy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2025
Amid the film’s self-conscious depiction of a brewing tempest, he remains a true force of nature.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2025
So I hope that’s not just a ripple; I hope it’s the butterfly wings that start the tempest, leading more and more people to behave like socially conscious consumers.
From Salon ● Jan. 28, 2025
At last he started home, but a tempest shipwrecked him and only after many and great dangers had he succeeded in reaching the Phaeacian land, a helpless, destitute man.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
Now, scientists have discovered that these massive tempests can also generate lightning far more powerful than anything typically seen on Earth.
From Science Daily ● May 21, 2026
Over the years, ships lost in tempests have piled up on the seabed, themselves becoming hazards to vessels that drag nets around.
From National Geographic ● Dec. 15, 2023
At the time of his resignation, his decision to step down humbled and humanized a pope whose papacy had become associated with tempests.
From New York Times ● Dec. 31, 2022
This epilogue-like conversation — along with the prickly dynamic between these two hurting characters, both of whom, it is made clear, are carrying around their own private tempests — feel oddly static, even anticlimactic.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 23, 2022
We will overcome; we will endure all of life’s tempests.
From "Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West" by Blaine Harden
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
