mid-14c., "one who solicits to sin; that which entices to evil" (originally especially the devil), from Old French tempteur (14c.), *tempteor, from Latin temptatorem, agent noun from temptare "to feel, try out" (see tempt).
-ess
fem. suffix, from French -esse, from Late Latin -issa, from Greek -issa (cognate with Old English fem. agent suffix -icge); rare in classical Greek but more common later, in diakonissa "deaconess" and other Church terms picked up by Latin.